How To Overwinter Plants In Pots🪴My FOUR Different Methods!

[@pearl7477]

This video was just what I needed. Thank you so much! I live in zone 5, so I can adjust from your situation. It was so helpful to give your location and zone- so many videos out there never mention those things, which are kind of critical in gardening to specific areas. Much appreciated.

[@ChicagoGardener]

Location is so critical! Even my different decks impact plants in different ways 🤣

[@sammysworld5485]

I’m very thankful here in my zone 7b NY, I do absolutely nothing to any of my 30 or more outdoor containers. All my conifer evergreens, Japanese maple trees, hydrangeas, perennials & bulbs survive yearly. The only thing I ever killed once was a hellebore due to root rot. Hard lesson learned. Great that you have the space to over winter.

[@ChicagoGardener]

I was surprised at how many plants were actually killed by root rot over winter!

[@HollenbergR]

First year for me in zone 7a Idaho and also first year growing heebores, which i have along the back fence under a maple tree. I'm a little nervous about keeping them alive now as they are looking strained which i had thought was needing water, but maybe it's actually too much. I don't water very often but in the shade there it might not need much either.

[@priyanair9114]

As a first time gardener this has helped me tremendously. I was going to bring in my green house to the basement but I think I will leave it outside. I need to over winter my blueberry plant, lavender, rosemary and pepper plants. The rest will have to fend for itself. 😂 can’t wait for more videos!

[@ChicagoGardener]

I’m glad it was helpful! I know wrapping evergreens in burlap over winter can help too.

[@GardenDoodles]

Thank you! Didn’t know that leaving them in a shady area is more ideal than in a sunny area. Maybe that’s why many of our container plants didn’t survive but those under the stairs do very well.

[@ChicagoGardener]

That would make sense!

[@aaronsvoboda5897]

Great tips! Definitely going to try planting a pot with bulbs for the spring again

[@lindahall1971]

I want to do this too!

[@ChicagoGardener]

It’s my favorite bc I can’t wait to see the sprouts poking through the soil in spring!

[@estreetangel]

Thank you for this video. It answered a lot of my over-wintering questions.

[@ChicagoGardener]

I’m so glad it was helpful!!

[@maryannp8400]

looking forward to your overwintering your raised beds video. I have a balcony, so don't get as much rain as you, but still plan on tarping my planter and will take any tips you can give.

[@ChicagoGardener]

I would definitely tarp! I find plants do better over winter if I can give them any extra protection.

[@grisespino5342]

🪴Wrapping bubble wrap around my pots has kept my root balls and pots safe. 🪴A layer of burlap on top as added protection and aesthetic. 🪴mulching Thanks for the tips Bethany. If you moved all the or most of the pots and furniture to one of your decks. You could have an evergreen with lights , with snow and that beautiful church in the background… magical. For your raised beds (furniture moving discs may give you the option to move them if you so choose.

[@Wellbaby94]

Here in Dallas 8a it usually has a couple of days that dip into the teens and then pop back up into the 70s. All of my containers on the deck get clumped together and covered with a planket. That worked well for me last year with my perennials. Tender plants like peppers will go to the garage.

[@ChicagoGardener]

I’m so jealous of your warm weather! Every winter I question why I live here 🤣

[@Wellbaby94]

@@ChicagoGardener And every summer I question mine!

[@heatherderganc5984]

Haaah! Yes!… Your neighbor here in Colleyville.

[@KenIvywood]

I overwintered my geranium in the pot it was in. Set it in a plastic tub and put lid on till spring. Spiny I pulled it out took off the dead leaves and put it in the sun with a good amount of water with plant food.

[@doowopshopgal]

Thank you for all this information. I’m lucky. I live in zone 9a and do not get hard freezes.

[@ChicagoGardener]

I’m so jealous of your warm weather!!

[@alexk3352]

I feel like you were JUST saying that you couldn't believe the growing season is already here. And just like that, it's coming to a close.

[@ChicagoGardener]

This has been the fastest garden season ever!

[@DaveCollierCamping]

Great info

[@ChicagoGardener]

Thank you!

[@DaveCollierCamping]

@@ChicagoGardener Take care

[@darlenegera8866]

I have two rose trees in pots that I over winter outside. I dig a hole put the pot in that hole and then put mulch around the rose tree. I'm in zone 7 and they are fine come Springtime

[@kimbullett3293]

I’m in Ohio zone 6. Just want to make sure I fully understand. Dormant shrubs and perennials should NOT be kept outside where they currently are in the sun?….unless they are hardy to zone 4, correct? Thanks for making this video. I don’t see a lot of people talking about this, so it’s very helpful!

[@ChicagoGardener]

If you’re able to move them to a shaded area I would do that just to keep temps more consistent. But if you can’t leaving them in the sun is fine!

[@bonniecarlstrom6014]

Such great options!! 🇺🇸🙏Remember to VOTE your faith🙏🇺🇸. ❤USA

[@GrowsGoneWild]

Good tips! I might have to bring in some papayas this year which is going to be weird 🤣

[@ChicagoGardener]

You have to let me know how that goes! I used to bring in a lemon tree over winter but it kept getting scale so I gave up on it 😩

[@GrowsGoneWild]

@@ChicagoGardener will do! Scale indoors sounds gross. Fungus gnats are already bad enough 🤣.

[@heatherderganc5984]

Great information! A question I have is about the need to provide light for plants overwintered inside. Zone 8 north Texas.

[@ChicagoGardener]

If the plants will be fully dormant they don’t need light but if you’re bringing in plants like citrus trees or others that won’t be going dormant they will need a light source

[@patsywatson946]

I live in zone 9B I water my plants really good in a freeze and the water or ice indulate the roots if it’s not below freezing more than 6 hrs which we normally don’t have

[@bmatlo8432]

I have two sugar tip Rose of Sharon perennials. They’re both in pots. They are hardy to zone five and I live in Chicago suburbs zone 6a. I am planning to move them to my garage for overwintering. Do you think they will make it? I just don’t know where to plant them in my yard right now.

[@sparklycat3236]

Hi! Found you from Grow For Me Gardening. I am 5b/6a and overwinter a lot of pots in garage and basement. I got budworms for the first time this year. Now do you deal with slugs, earwigs and jumping worms? I use sluggo plus for the earwigs and slugs, but I still find them. I don't want to bring any bugs in so I soak all my plants in soapy water for 15 minutes before bringing inside. You are doing a great job for a city garden!

[@ChicagoGardener]

I don't, luckily! Once in awhile I'll find a slug I brought up with a plant but I've maybe seen 10 total in my 5 years gardening here. I also have yet to see earwigs or jumping worms so I'm keeping my fingers crossed!!

[@vannee2426]

Will you please do Dahlias for fall and winter video? I grew Dahlias in pots this year and I am zone 6a I don’t have a heated garage and I don’t have a basement 😢Please please please

[@ChicagoGardener]

I linked a dahlia video from last year in the description if you want to watch it now but I’ll definitely film another one this year once I get my dahlias prepped for winter!

[@stephengary1217]

Thanks for the tips, especially about too much moisture. Do you dig your dahlia tubers out of pots or store them in the pots? I left them in pots in my unheated garage (zone7b) but they rotted. This year I am going to try digging and storing in wood chips. Huddling containers together in a sheltered area has worked well for me. I have one of those small plastic greenhouses from Amazon wedged into a corner and that works.

[@ChicagoGardener]

I leave my tubers in the pots or grow bags. I haven’t had one rot yet. I wonder if the garage was too cold for them.

[@candacemay7187]

So thankful I found you. I have 2 dwarf Weigela bushes in containers that I just purchased this year. I plan to move them into my brother's heated (50 degree) garage for the winter. Do you need to water or what care should I do over the winter?? I plan to plant them in the ground next spring and want to keep them healthy and alive. I live in Northeast Pennsylvania.

[@ChicagoGardener]

That’s what I plan to do with my Wiegela too! I water about once a month for plants in the garage. Since your garage will be a bit warmer than mine you might need to water more often, but I would just check the moisture level with your finger and water if the top couple inches feel dry.

[@courtneyruth196]

6a! Hello! From Buffalo NY!

[@ChicagoGardener]

Hello fellow 6a!!!

[@toninelson1956]

Have you ever tried overwintering supertunia vista bubblegum? I’m giving it a try this year… we shall see 😉

[@ChicagoGardener]

No bc I always end up pulling it after the budworms takeover 🤣 how are you going to overwinter it?

[@toninelson1956]

@@ChicagoGardener oh gosh I hope I don’t bring any critters inside! I’m just going to keep them in a pot under a grow light… I guess I really don’t have a well thought out plan 😂

[@lfay8177]

I overwintered supertunia Bordeaux and it did great under grow lights in my cold garage.I even took cuttings and got 3 more full sized plants! The original didn't make it past July but the babies are still going strong. Im going to overwinter one of them this year 😊

[@ruthannecoro6198]

I line all my container/potted perennials up together along my foundation and mulch them in with fall leaves. Easy peasy! Most things survive. Mums are 50/50 so I try to get those in the ground!

[@susanpharr6809]

Wish you could include footage of you working with your plants - something visual - instead of just talking about it all in a chair.

[@ChicagoGardener]

I will once I start overwintering them! I’m just not at that point in the season yet.

[@susanpharr6809]

@@ChicagoGardener Great - thank you! I will look forward to it! So many potted herbs and plants here - to save them through downstate NY winters…💜🌿

[@AnnWilson-n6o]

Fellow Chicagoan here. I’ve routinely overwintered my geraniums, with great success. Can any plant be overwintered? Top of mind right now are my vinca and my “spillers” from my pots. Thanks, and keep up the good work.

[@ChicagoGardener]

Anything that’s not a true annual I think is worth a try to overwinter!

[@sunshineacresdreaming8351]

Do you provide light when in garage, and when do you put back out?

[@ChicagoGardener]

Great question! I don’t and I put them back out once I start to see buds swell or for bulbs once they break through the soil.

[@walktheearth7878]

Thank you for the information! This is my first time with container plants in Chicago, and I have two questions. 1. For the less woody plants like ajuga, do you cut down some of the plant so it's basically only the roots left? And 2. Do you have experience leaving out terra cotta pots outdoors in the winter? I've heard they can break in cold weather. Thank you!!

[@ChicagoGardener]

Sometimes I cut back and sometimes I don’t. I’d say I don’t more often but it mostly depends on if it’s easier for me to move if I cut it back. I haven’t left terracotta pots out bc I’m afraid they’ll crack. I actually have a large ceramic pot that’s too heavy for me to move and it does have a few cracks from winter 😩

[@SMElder-iy6fl]

I wish you had shown us the plastic greenhouse. Where do you get one?

[@ChicagoGardener]

Good call! I just linked the one I got for this year in the description. One of the older videos I linked shows a slightly smaller one I’ve used in the past.

[@marybethgardener111]

I have a bunch of quart size perennials and shrubs that I may not get into the ground this season. Do you think I should put them in the garage over winter? I'm in New England Zone 5b/6a. Our garage stays a good 10 degrees over the outside temperature.

[@ChicagoGardener]

I would definitely put them in the garage just remember to water them a few times over winter!

[@gloriabranch6287]

I would like to over winter a sunpatient in the garage anyone have any luck

[@marybethgardener111]

@@gloriabranch6287 good idea. Worth a try!

[@DebbieBevins]

Does your garage have windows in it for light? Is light necessary when overwintering your hydrangeas and other plants?

[@ChicagoGardener]

If the plant goes dormant and drops its leaves, lights not necessary until it starts to break dormancy in the spring! When I overwintered a lemon tree though that doesn’t go dormant, that I had to keep under a grow light.

[@HUMMMlZ]

Should i monitor my plantz or just keep up the rutinw Bigfan#

[@Kpaige4]

Just to clarify, you leave your dahlia tubers directly in the pots in the garage?

[@ChicagoGardener]

Yes, I leave them in their pots!

[@taraharper5631]

Do you cut the dahlia plant ? I lost 250 tubers last year in storage. Barn was too warm last year.

[@sterlgirlceline]

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

[@gwenjohnson9258]

Where did you get your greenhouse?

[@ChicagoGardener]

Amazon! I just added a link to the description. This is a new one for me this year so I haven’t used it yet to see how it does.

[@verawallace9055]

Something is chewing on my leaves especially in the shade Garden , is there anything I can used to stop this from happening, i once sprinkle baking soda and it destroyed my jackfrost plant, it did a job this year on the azaleas

[@ChicagoGardener]

Do you think it’s something like a slug or more like a rabbit or squirrel?

[@verawallace9055]

@@ChicagoGardener A slug , lots of holes in the leaves

[@verawallace9055]

Or bugs

[@maureendunne-x4f]

Can i overwinter a large begonia hanging basket?

[@shervajoseph-kelly2275]

Does your plants get light in your garage?

[@ChicagoGardener]

They don't. I only bring completely dormant plants who have dropped their leaves into the garage. When I used to have a lemon tree that didn't go dormant over winter, I had it under a grow light.

[@shervajoseph-kelly2275]

@@ChicagoGardener I bring my hibiscus, gardenia, lemon and Jasmine’s inside but I keep them under grow lights for a few hours a day. They still lose a lot of leaves but not all, I was wondering if I didn’t need the grow lights, that’s why I asked.

[@doowopshopgal]

I have not had much luck with hydrangea. I have one in a pot, but it always gets black spots and I don’t know why. I’ve searched for the problem and still searching. 😢

[@ChicagoGardener]

Black spots on the leaves?

[@HollenbergR]

More hydrangea questions. I moved here to Idaho from Illinois about a year ago and have one growing in a small pot outside, and another cutting ice done that had just taken root recently. Should i leave the potted one on the 8 in pot outside, or repot it into a bigger one and leave it, or store it in my plastic greenhouse? We still have at least 2-3 weeks to first frost as it isn't in the 10 day forecast yet. What would you recommend for the new cutting? Thanks for the great video!

[@Curlygirly84]

​@ChicagoGardener mine get brown spots on leaves. I'm thinking it's rust. My indoor fig has ot too. Copper fungicide helps if you can keep up with it.

[@asyed1995]

Deep Desires to see all Zones& how to safe Agricultural Lands & organic Seeds .Waters Clean Air % Oxygen in Airs .thanks .

[@ddhqj2023]

In zone 3, you really don't bother trying to overwinter anything in pots. Bury them under snowbanks, they still die.

[@ChicagoGardener]

I can imagine that! How cold do you normally get over winter?

[@ddhqj2023]

@@ChicagoGardener Last year, our coldest days were about -32 celsius. That's -25.6 Fahrenheit. You just don't go out if you don't have to and living here was when I realized that masking up as we did during covid, made it a lot easier to bear when it was necessary to go to the grocery store for example. So I've actually kept and still use my four layer, fitted cloth mask for the weeks that we have to deal with that sort of thing. But like I said, potted plants just don't winter here no matter what you do. If you can't bring them in, say goodbye.

[@LAWandCoach]

Bubble wrap around your pots.

[@JennyJardin]

to what thickness?

[@KentuckyGardenGirl]

needed to know this. 6b over here, Thanks! 🪴🪴

[@ChicagoGardener]

I’m glad it was helpful!!