Tutorials and techniques for saving marginally hardy plants for many more seasons to come
Brr ! A gumption of urging fence the weather prognosis in the Northwest . October is over , with its subtle reminders and voiced colour of apricot and red . Winter is on its fashion . November announce itself with stringent tones and numb toes and digit . It ’s time to be indisputable the works you love are tucked away and prepared for wintertime . Many of us struggle to grow plants that are on the bound of our hardiness zone . The marine mood in our realm teases us with tender temperatures and no rime for several weeks into decline . gardener are always optimistic and can often fall quarry to buying a plant that really should n’t be wait to outlast our wintertime . We really want to grow plants likebananas(Musaspp . and cvs . , Zones 5–10 andEnsetespp . and cvs . , Zones 8–10),citrus , nonhardyagapanthus(Agapanthusspp . and cvs . , 8–10),dahlias(Dahliaspp . and cvs . , Zones 7–11),cannas(Cannaspp . and cvs . , Zones 8–11),gingers(Zingiberspp . and cvs . , Zones 9–12 andHedychiumspp . and cvs . , Zones 8–10),nerine lilies(Nerine bowdeniiand resume . , Zones 8–11 ) , andtree ferns(Dicksonia antarctica , Zones 9–11 ) . But then we are faced with a quandary of what to do with them when the reality of winter sets in . Do we discard them by throwing them in the compost heap ? Do we leave alone them in place and trust for a meek , teetotal wintertime and then act surprised when they do n’t survive ? Do we practice zonal denial by attempting to insulate them from the cold , preparing them to survive , and protect them when they emerge in the spring ? I vote for the later option . To see more , I went in search of some pioneers on the front line of this practice of overwintering tender plant outdoors .
Overwintering tree ferns in this gardener’s stumpery involves foil, blankets, fleece, and conifer boughs.
An amazing gardener , Pat Reihl tends her stumpery garden on Vashon Island off the seashore of Washington . The stumpery is a throwback to Victorian times when fern appeal were acquire and shared with other gardener in just one domain . Pat ’s garden is a assemblage of hundreds of ferns with over twenty tree ferns . She has been develop them since 2006 . In her traveling to the UK , she has memorise the good way to winter them . First , she enclose the proboscis in foil and then in a mantle normally used for water heaters , which she tap securely together . She tucks fleece around the top of the fern to protect it . The fern frond are not cut back but leave behind standing to help oneself maintain the air around the crown and keep the moisture from rotting into the flora . The last thing she does is add some conifer boughs to add a slight more protection . She typically does this on Thanksgiving , and the wrapping rest on until the end of March or sometimes into April bet on the severity of the wintertime . Here is a peachy video taken by my friend Doreen Wynja that bear witness this unconscious process hurry up . This method acting can be used for many type of plant that have a good core structure and exert that structure through the winter .
This gardener uses string lights to warm up his tree fern in the winter.
Another overwintering expert , wood craftsman and gardener Mike Yates , has a dissimilar advance to overwintering his tree fern . He wraps Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree ferns with string lights and turn them on when the temperature dunk below 30 ° F ( – 1.1 ° light speed ) . In his experience , the ferns are hardy down to 16 ° F ( – 8.8 ° hundred ) with this method . When late frosts get in in the spring , he sum a covering of leaves or garden fleece . Covering the crown of the plant with garden wool can evoke the temperature of the plant by 10 ° to 15 ° F ( 5.5 ° to 8.8 ° C ) . Mike will sometimes lose the fronds to a hoar , but this usually does n’t kill the plants .
Potted plants are protected under overhanging roofs and trees.
Mike also tends to a routine of other marginally hardy flora at this sentence of class . He grows linden tree , loquats , and various cacti in his garden . perch on a bluff above the Bainbridge ferry depot , his plants dare the winter weather . Potted Key fluxing lime are work into the shelter of the porch during the coldest weather . Many unlike types of cacti are shelter by big overhang loquat tree , native madronas ( Arbutus menziesii , Zones 7–9 ) , and eucalyptus ( Eucalyptusspp . and cvs . , Zones 8–10 ) in a western United States - facing garden bed at the bottom of the bluff .
Small herbaceous plants need insulation but also room to breathe.
Treelike plants with strong structures are not the only ones that necessitate security . Nonhardy herbaceous plant like gingers , dahlias , nerines , agapanthus , and cannas can also be overwintered successfully . This is my favorite method : I cut two pieces of Gallus gallus wire about the size of the plant base . I create a dome with one slice and then secure it over the industrial plant fundament with landscape painting staple . Then I supply a stratum of either leave , small evergreen branches , or garden fleece . On the top I place the second piece of chicken wire , which I have also made into a dome . This slice is secured through the other layers with more staple . I usually leave this in place until there have been several 50 ° F ( 10 ° C ) days in a row . Late spring frosts are the biggest danger . Do n’t use charge plate , because the plant call for some water through the winter and the fluctuation in temperatures can be very extreme . allow me show you this outgrowth in the video below as I prepare my beautiful ‘ Café au Lait ’ Dahlia pinnata for winter .
I have several plants that have already been covered like this , and I have more to cover shortly . January and February are ordinarily our cold months in the part , so there is still sentence to protect the plants in your garden . Are you ready to begin planning your next purchase of beautiful , marginally unfearing plant ? I am .
— Susan Calhoun is the owner of Plantswoman Design in Bainbridge Island , Washington .
Fine Gardening commend Products
A.M. Leonard Deluxe Soil Knife & Leather Sheath Combo
o.k. horticulture receives a commission for items purchase through links on this site , including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs .
Get our latest tips , how - to article , and instructional videos transport to your inbox .
sign on you up …
Related Articles
Four Dynamo Dahlias for the Northwest Garden
How to Overwinter Tender Plants in the Northern Plains
Fall Seed Saving in the Northwest
A Sunflower Festival
Join okay horticulture for a free hire bouncy webinar featuring Dr. Janna Beckerman , a renowned works pathologist as well as professor emerita at Purdue University and the ornamental technical manager …
When I spotted a special sand clam cactus ( Astrophytum asterias ) at the Philadelphia Flower Show a few month ago , I do it I was in trouble . With a delicious colouring material pattern …
When we only prioritize plants we want over plant our landscape need , each time of year is filled with a never - ending tilt of chore : pruning , pinching , lacrimation , treating , amending , and fertilizing , with …
Subscribe today and save up to 47%
Video
Touring an Eco-friendly, Shady Backyard Retreat
You must be careful when you embark the backyard of garden interior decorator Jeff Epping — not because you ’re likely to actuate on something , but because you might be dive - bombed by a span …
4 Midsummer Favorites From a Plant Breeder’s Garden
Episode 181: Plants You Can’t Kill
Episode 180: Plants with Big, Bold Foliage
4 Steps to Remove Invasive Plants in Your Yard
All Access appendage get more
sign on up for afree trialand get approach to ALL our regional content , plus the rest of the penis - only contentedness library .
Start Free Trial
Get complete website access to expert advice , regional content , and more , plus the print powder magazine .
Start your spare run
Already a member?enter
There are a few different methods you can use to keep tender tree-like plants like tree fern in the ground this winter instead digging them up for the greenhouse.Photo: Susan Calhoun
This ‘Café au Lait’ dahlia and other marginally hardy herbaceous plants can be overwintered in the ground using chicken wire and insulating material.Photo: Susan Calhoun
