What Do You Overwinter ?

[thistlebloom]

I now overwinter one Meyer Lemon tree I named Alex. But so far I haven't had to bring it indoors.

All of the plants that ya'll have mentioned just stay outside all year around.

A new lemon tree? Named Alex? I know a guy named Alex...

 

[Pulsegleaner]

Only three of my outside pods got a ticket indoors this year (the lemon tree other citruses and rose apples don't count because I got a bit distracted and they never made it OUT over the summer in the first place.) And technically at least two of those aren't so much saved as under reprieve.

The first pot is the one with the two unknown plants, which got a trip un since they were still flowering and I wanted as much seed off of them as I could get. The skinny leafed one with the big bell shaped flowers is now pretty much done (just waiting for the last leaves to die before it gets pulled up. But the one with the paddle shaped leaves seems to love it indoors and has started making addition bud clusters left and right, so it may still be here in the spring (actually since I still don't have a clue what it is, I don't know how it grows long term. I've been assuming it was an annual herbal weed, but for all I know it's actually perennial and possibly on it's way to shrubhood.)

The second pot is one of the wheat ones. One of the wheat plants (at least one, possibly several) decided to throw me a curveball by developing a flower head in October (I've heard of winter wheat, but this is ridiculous!) so it had to come in if I wanted the grains. Whether it stays over the winter or gets tossed out once the head is ready and harvested depends on whether by then other heads have appeared.)

Finally I brought in the pot of mixed herbs because I still wanted some of them (and it looks like those herbs don't grow enough over one year from seeds to be able to use them) The holy and other basils were long since removed (none of them smelled all that attractive to me, so I saw no point in keeping them. So now it's just the spiked Zataar sprigs, which are growing rapidly since being repotted (a little TOO rapidly maybe, I think I'll need to re-pot them AGAIN pretty soon, to a MUCH bigger pot)

 

[buckabucka]

We have a lemon tree, but I don't know what kind (we got it when someone was moving away). It never goes outside, but it makes huge lemons, grapefruit-size.

The only thing I am overwintering is some greens in an unheated hoop house. Two years ago, I had salads until Christmas, then it really froze up, but many plants rebounded in the spring. Last winter was frigid. Everything died.

 

[Jared77]

Thank you @catjac1975 that's good to know. I had read about people thinking if it but never anything serious or a step by step how to regarding wintering roses.

I have been wanting to keep Black Magic roses for oh let me think....about 9yrs now. . My wife had a bouquet of them for our wedding. Was just those roses and they were so striking against her white dress. It was something like 2 and a half dozen roses. Her thing was she didn't want her hands showing and with that many roses believe me they didn't!

So I've always been kicking around keeping a black magic rose bush but it's hardy to zone 6-7 so I know there's no way it would make it here.

I'll have to look into it more and finally make this idea happen.

 

[baymule]

Has Alex given you any lemons yet?

Alex is just getting his roots established, looking around and getting ready to move. Alex decided to wait to bloom in the new surroundings!

 

[catjac1975]

Some rosarians take the bushes, dig around it, with a larger hole on one side and tip the bush into the hole to bury it. This is done for tree roses, especially. I hill up the crown on my roses but with my daylily madness I have less and less time devoted to my roses. For such a special one, Jared, it may be worth you time. I have in the past created a barrier around the roses and filled it with leaves. I do not think that would be enough for a zone 6 or 7 rose in your zone. I read a book all about this and competitive rose growers but cannot remember the name. I tried my had at hybridizing roses but only had a few seeds germinate. The plants eventually succumbed to the winter and the blooms were nothing special. Still was very cool to get a rose from seed. Now my roses have to be extra hardy to make it here for lack of time.

 

[catjac1975]

I have always found coleus the worst bug attractors. I no longer start them indoors. The are so beautiful, though.

 

[catjac1975]

My son bought me a large hibiscus for mother's day. It has 3 different colored plants in one pot. I was hesitant about bringing the bug loving plant indoors. It was pot bound so I gave it a new pot, new potting mix, and removed much of the crowded roots. I used a system treatment on the soil long before bringing it in. It is in great shape and giving me daily blooms.

 

[ninnymary]

Yes!
Um, not that I have done it, but a sweet elderly lady I know does every year. I think she takes cuttings and puts them in a bright window.
Mary, wouldn't they survive outside all year?

Ok, miss expert, you said "yes" but haven't done it" Haha. (You know why I'm kidding you right?) I don't think they'll survive outside. There is too much fog/moisture. I really didn't want to go the cuttings route. Seems like alot of work and knowing my luck, the cuttings won't take. What if I just bring the whole pot indoors? Will that work?

Mary

 

[canesisters]

Why not try both ways? Bring the pot inside. Snip it way back. Stick the snippins' in a jar of water. If they root - good - now you've got twice as many.
My roommate was given a pot (a pretty BLUE pot) that had a black mini elephant ear and a bunch of coleus. They got so huge that I broke off all the tops so that the E.E. could get sun. Not wanting to just toss them, I stuck them in the flower bed next to the porch. They rooted in just plain old soil and have taken off. I'm going to hate to see them go when we get frost this weekend.