Persephone Period in the Garden

Growing plants in winter is a challenge that is often affected by the Persephone Period, the time of year when daylight is less than 10 hours. Growing in a greenhouse does not lessen the requirement plants have for light. Gardener Scott discusses how lack of sunlight affects plants and winter gardening. (Video #318)
Find your Persephone Period:
www.timeanddate.com/sun/
www.solartopo.com/daylength.htm
"Winter Harvest Handbook" by Eliot Coleman: amzn.to/3nNX8IB
"Four-Season Harvest" by Eliot Coleman: amzn.to/3qWt9Ah
Join the Gardener Scott channel to get access to perks. Click the "JOIN" button or link here:
/ @gardenerscott
Click this link to SUBSCRIBE: / @gardenerscott
Planta Greenhouses:
plantagreenhouses.com/gardenerscott
You can support the channel with Gardener Scott merchandise like T-shirts and mugs at the Gardener Scott Store: / @gardenerscott
To order a GreenStalk vertical garden system, click on this affiliate link:
lddy.no/kdvq
Use code "GARDENERSCOTT" for a $10 discount.
If you're looking for quality seeds and gardening supplies check out True Leaf Market:
www.pntrac.com/t/8-11415-2422...
If you use Amazon and want to buy anything at all, click through with this affiliate link: www.amazon.com/?tag=gardenersc...
Check out Gardener Scott's Recommended Gardening Books at: bookshop.org/shop/gardenerscott
#EnjoyGardening #GardenerScott
Links included in this description and referenced in videos might be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. If you purchase a product or service with the links I provide, I may receive a small commission. There is no additional charge to you for those affiliate links and your support allows me to provide free content every week on the Gardener Scott channel.
Thank you for your support!

[@noelleparris9451]

As a glass half full person, to me it makes more sense for the Persephone months to be when she's NOT in the underworld, but when she's among the living. Thanks for the ongoing lessons, Gardener Scott 👍🏾

[@carladelagnomes]

Interesting information. Coming from Alaska, I just call this time, "The Great Dark Days." No plans to even try growing anything right now here in Northeast Nevada...

[@maydaygarden]

I enjoyed the live chat today. Thank you for referring me to this video to explain why it might be better to pull late producing peppers now and prepping the soil instead of hanging on to the tail end of a summer plant. Mondays are my opportunity to attend a master class. Thank you so much 🧤

[@pd6569]

MG Scott, Happy thanksgiving to you and your family. Thank you for the education; I not only did not know what the word meant but did not know the history behind it. Be safe and well.

[@Earth-uu3nf]

I hope that you are having a great Thanksgiving 🦃✨

[@garrisonjones]

Thank you for these Greenhouse videos. Love them. Please keep them coming. I have a green house and am learning a lot from them. Thank your

[@lilal3753]

Thanks, Gardener Scott. I always learn something from you.

[@jenecalaplant1752]

It dosent matter where I try to plan. In the dead of winter (3b) my plot only gets 2 to 4 hours of light. I thought warmer soil would help but you are on the money. Light is essential . But is synthetic light enough to value putting the energy into ? Ive heard ,dont go against nature ,and being in an area like 3b I've learned to do just that. Let my soil recover and do my best to nuture my perennials and give my annuals the best head start I can. I started from the bottom and wisdom like your has helped me grow exponentially 😁

[@melissamedina2363]

I keep citrus trees and geraniums, among other things in an unheated sunroom all winter. It faces north and the temperatures remain at 20 degrees above whatever the outdoor temperature is. Everything goes into a state of suspended animation. It's very magical to behold. It's like time is standing still. Sometimes I will get blooms on the geraniums. I have never heard of the Persephone period. I always thought it was the cooler temperatures that kept everything at a standstill.

[@mindypereda9660]

I never heard about this before. Thank you gardner Scott for teaching me something new every time I watch your videos. 🥰

[@cdeg1964]

Thank you. Now I have the information that I was apparently missing regarding winter gardening. This makes soooo much sense.

[@itiswhatitis9666]

Super cool to learn. I went to the map and my garden that’s in boxes actually gets an hour less sun than my greenhouse! I would have thought nothing of this, had I not watched this video. Thanks!

[@brianseybert2189]

Thanks Gardener Scott! You saved me from planting my cold frame. Last year I started it early October and had lettuce and spinach all winter. One thing or another and my cold frame is still barren. Was going to plant nest week with some milder weather, but now I guess I will just cover the amended soil and wait till Mid Feb. Happy thanksgiving !

[@ElizabethHaynesTX]

This was so helpful for me. I’ve had a tough year in the garden so I’m now on my third try for fall/winter greens (zone 8a). This helps explain the stalled growth even though we’re having crazy warm temps!

[@notdiyheather]

This is my first year growing a fall/ winter garden in zone 8b. Thank you for great info!

[@FloridaGirl-]

Wow this vid was so useful. Going to pass it along and rewatch it. Being in FL, the sun is so noticably low right now. And this very thing is effecting my veggie plants. I have to get this down pat! Thanks for the info!! 👍. Answered some ???? I had.

[@Lucysroses]

That was very helpful! Great video thanks

[@winstongibson3732]

Safe journeys dude.

[@adampetherick6266]

This is why I love your Channel full of knowledge great teacher wisdom

[@donnaallred7068]

Thank you for that very informative video. Happy Holidays.

[@anniecochrane3359]

Very interesting. Thank you!

[@darylefleming1191]

I learned something today. Nice.

[@suzannegriggs1011]

Thanks for such great information! I will be building a greenhouse this spring and now I have more realistic expectations as I plan how to use it.

[@heidiclark6612]

Happy Thanksgiving Gardener Scott! What a wild myth. Great information as always! Thank You for the links to look this up.

[@CharliePFoogo]

Excellent video! Thanks for posting.

[@roccoconte2960]

Happy thanks giving, very interesting video .

[@borracho-joe7255]

Very interesting and thanks !

[@juliehorney995]

Excellent, thank you!

[@philbartoli2011]

Thanks GS didn't know about that. Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.

[@cindynielson4231]

Thanks for sharing your wealth of knowledge. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family. 👍🦃

[@therevelation19]

Can only agree partially. In my zone we have daylight until wintersolstice of 7h 45m and wintergardening is here real fun. I´m still sowing some crops to plant outside, even I ain´t got a greenhouse, just some fleece and, maybe, some small tunnels with filmcover.

[@atik]

useful explanation sir scott 🥰👍

[@lisagilmore4519]

Happy thanksgiving!🦃

[@patpatrick7769]

Thanks!

[@GardenerScott]

Thanks, Pat!

[@Junzar56]

Our Persephone days are from December 5-January 6

[@lastchancemonicam3948]

Happy Thanksgiving G.S. Give Nala and your other dog an extra pat for me.

[@jolenedial618]

VERY interesting! I assumed warmth was the key to growing in colder weather. Thank you for sharing this!

[@LisadeKramer]

Good enformatin. Do you have a video on your new greenhouse/hoop house? Where did you get that it looks really sturdy?

[@GardenerScott]

Thanks. I have a video coming soon to tell more about the greenhouse. It comes from Planta Greenhouses.

[@ralph601]

Hi, Scott. Nice to know. I thought just because I have a small green house 4x6 all would grow as if it were outside. I am thinking that is why my starts were all leggy. here in south texas Corpus Christi. Would a grow light be a good addition? Thanks and have a great day.

[@GardenerScott]

Yes, that can explain the legginess. A grow light can help.

[@laurie4914]

How much supplemental lighting would be needed to keep plants growing and how bright? Would full spectrum LEDs at the top of the greenhouse be enough or would the lights need to be close (12") like you need when growing seedlings indoors. I was thinking the latter, but recently read in The Flower Farmer book by Lynn Bycynski that plants respond to darkness and not light and that you only need 10-foot candles (~107 LUX) for plants to keep growing so now I am curious.

[@GardenerScott]

It does depend on the plant and the strength of the lights and the height above plants. For small plants it is similar to indoor seedling growing. Plants do need darkness, but it is light that provides energy for growth.

[@kaidentoysngarden5497]

Hi Mr. Scott, I’m growing some tropical fruit trees in pots. I live in zone 9a Houston, we started to get cold winter months and I have move all my tropical fruit trees into the greenhouse under patio cover. The trees don’t get any sunlight. Would they still survive when there is no sunlight until March? Any advice would be appreciated. Thank you so much for your time 👍🥰🙏

[@GardenerScott]

They will probably survive and go into a dormancy period. It is normal for leaves to turn yellow and drop in a period like that.

[@kaidentoysngarden5497]

@@GardenerScott thank you thank you so much for your response 🙏. I was worry about them as seeing some leaves/fruits dropped. ☺️

[@codysanford1988]

Off topic question. I'm in CO as well, and was planning on starting onion seed indoors for transplanting after 1.5 months starting in January. Do you think that is to early? Started them last year in January under lights indoors, transplanted in May, and they started bulbing a bit prior to transplant. I wanted to attempt getting them in the ground earlier this year. Just wasn't sure if the frost would kill small onions off. I know they are cold hardy but not sure to what extent. Thank you for any information that you may have for me.

[@GardenerScott]

I usually start my onion seeds in January and transplant in late April or early May. The small onions can handle frost but may not survive a hard freeze without protection. It's a challenge in CO because they are a cool season plant that doesn't do well in summer heat, but our spring is too short for them to start off well.

[@zmblion]

Where did you get your greenhouse?

[@GardenerScott]

It's a Planta greenhouse.

[@jeffmartin693]

What zone do you grow in?

[@GardenerScott]

I'm in 5b.

[@jeffmartin693]

@@GardenerScott Im in 5a so i follow you close on times