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Flowering Plants and When to cut the cord

10 years ago

I am beside myself- some of my plants are putting out new shoots and buds!
My little hobby gh is presently heated by natural gas and since I don't have the bill for it's first month of operation to make a financial decision about how long I can afford to run the heater, I am fretting over making the decision to "put down" the plants by cutting off the heat.
When they looked like they were just going to ripen up the last of their fruit and quietly expire, it felt natural, but now with new flowers coming, I feel like I'm going to be Cruella!
I think my husband would notice if I snuck them all in the house, so that's out.
Anyone else feel this way at the end of the season?

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Comments (6)

sjetski
10 years ago
Haha, i do know the feeling, i then pick a few candidates for overwintering which helps by providing me some "closure".

I also get that feeling with my tons of leftover seedlings early in the season. Heck i've had more than one person beg me for my (rare) seedlings, only to do nothing with them because suddenly they realize they have to dig a garden plot or buy bags of dirt (cheap and lazy factors). Needless to say they get scratched off my donation list....... :)

Lori, are you sure you can't whittle down your favorite plants to a tall stem, and tuck them away in a solo cup for overwintering? A cool basement ought to be fine, and may even be ideal. They really don't need any light when leafless and dormant. Might be worth a shot.

Steve
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scents_from_heaven
10 years ago
Lori, I wish I could assist with the overwintering situation. I do not have that problem here is sunny central Florida. My solitary surving chili from my house mate's lack of water during the summer just keeps going until it feels it is time to stop. Once it looks like a dead stick I cut it back and when spring arrives it wakes up and begins growing once again and is always loaded with peppers. Being raised southern I like hot pepper sauce (vinegar and the peppers) on a lot of the vegetables I eat. I also make sauces and such. I know what it feels like as they are the children you raised from seed and gave life to. I just find a new spot in the yard to plant a few more and give away to people I know will treasure them. I have sacrificed other items to keep my plants warm and happy when I lived in northern Florida where it gets cold for several months and once in a rare while snows but it does not accumulate for long and is gone before the next day. Your seeds will be treasured and cherished and will live happy and healthy.
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I guess I would like to see a scientific article confirming the very common (and admittedly reasonable!) idea that a plant diverts energy from growing its roots in order to produce flowers and that it's just a one-way transfer of energy. It makes complete sense, but I'd like to see more of the botany and biology of it. I'm just not 100% convinced that producing flowers is a net loss to the roots, end of story. I wonder if it's possible that any growth process of the plant also grows the roots, and that there are other variables involved. But maybe I'm completely wrong. Clearly growing the leaves sends energy to the root, but maybe growing flowers just results in a net loss to the roots, and that is the end of the story. Maybe I'm just self-justifying because I want to see flowers on my plants -- yes, even the first few months after I plant them in September! I just can't stand the idea of cutting them off as soon as I put them in the ground. :-(((
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jtight
10 years ago
KInd of in same boat. I have several that are dropping leaves to where they look like sticks; however, I am going to cleanup the dead leaves a/ keep them going til they in fact die.

Realized my problem was overwatering w/in the GH. The humidity gets to ~90% at night w/ all the doors/windows closed up so I cut back to twice a week for 3 mins.

Soil stays moist b/c GH blocks out direct sunlight.

Keep pumping heat in there til they DIE
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CanadianLori
Original Author
10 years ago
I think I will try the whittle down method. I can maybe slide them down to the basement when my spouse is out of the house. It's an unfinished area so might just work out.
I once hid a 6 foot tall mermaid lamp down there for nearly 3 months before anyone noticed :)
Thanks for the suggestion.
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sjetski
10 years ago
NP.

Almost forgot, some overwinters will die no matter what, so if you have an absolute favorite, then consider overwintering two of them to better your chances of one surviving.

They only need occasional water, and if they will not be given light then a cooler spot in the basement will work best to induce dormancy. Or you can just experiment and place them in a couple of different spots (low light, no light, cooler, warmer, etc).

Good luck either way.

Steve

This post was edited by sjetski on Sun, Nov 17, 13 at 14:37
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DMForcier
10 years ago
The size of the bill is selectable. So long as your heater is on a thermostat, just dial the temp back. The plants will live so long as they are 40F or better, just slow down. And in zone 6 you shouldn't need the heater on much anyway. (If you do look for air leaks in the GH.)

Dennis
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