drhorticulture Ottawa does get -30C more often in late January and early February but some years the lowest is -25C. However, the summers are better than some other zone 5 locations, growing season from mid-May to end of September.

Hi Marcia, I live in zone 5 too. Up until recently, I have been just burying my lotus containers in the ground over the winter....not very deep......just below the soil surface, and then covering them with leaves. You have to water them several times during the winter, if they are in a protected area that doesn't get rain. Last April, we made a lotus bog. It is a 300 gallon Rubbermaid stocktank that was sunk into the ground, and then dirt put back in to about 10" from the top, then filled with water. We just started it last April, so this is the first winter its gone through. It hasn't sprouted yet, but I'm sure it will. And it was ALOT of work to dig that big hole. Some people here have just dug a hole near their pond and keep the lotus in that (protecting it with mulch over the winter). I'm going to try that next year, but instead of just putting the container down in the hole, I bought a 40 gallon Tuff Stuff tank and will sink it into the ground, and then put a 25 gallon container of lotus into that one, making it easy to take it out to thin it, and then put it back in. Hopefully it will be okay over winters, with a layer of mulch/leaves over it. I was going to do it this year, but wasn't sure where I wanted the lotus, so I'm just keeping it on the ground this year, until I decide. I hope I haven't confused you.

I'm in 7a and our temps have just recently gone into the 30's. Definitely get those babies inside! Right now I have my plumies in an unheated greenhouse and am waiting to see if they'll start going dormant without my stripping the foliage. If they don't start dropping leaves soon I will cut them off. Like Bill said leave a 1/4" of the leaf stem attached to the trunk and/or branches. The leaf stump will yellow and drop. While they still have foliage I'll give them a minimum amount of water now that it's getting cool. Once the foliage has dropped I proabably won't water again until the spring when it's time for them to break dormancy. You just want to make sure that wherever you store them they don't freeze. We have the GH heaters set to go on if the temps dip below 40. You can store them in a dark or lit area but I do prefer dim. I don't have a choice with the GH but sometimes the sun can be really strong and when the days begin to lengthen they can come out of dormancy before you want them to. If you only have a few to store a garage that stays above freezing or a basement is a good place. If you park your car in your garage I wouldn't keep the plants in there. The exhaust fumes aren't good for the plants Karyn

Hi Purple. Yeah you basically got it right. Yes, the bloom on old wood. Dwarf Singapore Pink would be an excellent plumeria to start with. In zones 9 and above it would remain evergreen and probably bloom most of the year. I have one now that I got from Stokes Tropicals probably 4 years ago now. That tree is huge now! It easily has grown 20+tips so yes, it has the potential to bloom on all those tips. To me, the fragrance is really nice. I think DSP is over looked by many because it doesn't produce the huge flashy flowers. The flowers are just a soft pink but they still are pretty. I live in zone 6 and even my DSP is basically evergreen. It dropped all its leaves, and in the same month it grew all new leaves. Within another month or so, it will be blooming again. It has been the first tree to flower for me out of the 150+ trees I have. Another excellent variety for people just starting out would be Celadine. It's a very fragrant variety with yellow and white flowers. It's also a very reliable bloomer. You seem to have a pretty good idea on the concept of there temp requirements. I encourage you to read up on the older posts regarding there cultural requirements. I wish you the best of luck starting out with these tropical gems! Just one word of caution. THESE TROPICAL FLOWERING TREES ARE VERY ADDICTING!! I should know. When I was first getting started, I bought 3 unrooted cuttings. I was so proud of myself for getting them to root, I ended up with around 50 more before the end of that year! Andrew