Overwintering in zone 6

barnbatt's picture
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I have collected a lot of tropicals this year.  Can anyone help with overwintering inside. 

Magdevilla vines, duranta, hibiscus, Crossandra, morning glory tree.  Night blooming jasmine.  

Is there any that you can just put into a warm place and not get any light or water and bring back next spring???

 

Crossandra

Crossandra, hibiscus, morning glory, jasmine does very well in the area where we will have our new home in Goa (India). Temperature is 37C at the highest in summer and 10C at the lowest in winter. I do not recommend keeping these away from light or water. (Must add these to the list of plants to grow when we move there in December.) :)

Lourdes

Gloria's picture

Just wondering

I was just wondering if you had any seeds from the Morning Glory Tree?
skbeal's picture

I think the main thing you'll

I think the main thing you'll need to do is ensure that you continue to give them adequate light....I have night blooming jasmine as well, and I live in zone 8....and there are lots of other tropicals I over winter inside. With many of mine like Stephanotis Floribunda, Adeniums and other stuff, the main thing I do differently when I bring them in for the winter is to water them much less frequently. Also, if you were fertilizing them, I wouldn't do that during the cooler months. Depending on when you bring them inside and when you can take them back outside, I'd stop fertilizing probably towards the end of September. You probably don't take them out -- even for hardening off until May, so I wouldn't start fertilizing again until maybe June. Make sure you keep them in a warm and sunny place and that you don't let your house temperature get below about 68. Most tropicals that are tender will not survive in night time temperatures that dip below about 65.

Susan,The Assistant Administrator, the Texas Yankee and the Texas Rangerette.

RonsGarden's picture

Tropicals

Your list of tropicals all have very similar indoor culture and care.  They all need some sun, or at least be placed in a bright window for the winter months.  An east window is perfect with morning sun. 

Dry air can pose a problem since they all enjoy a higher level of humidy that is rarely found in our homes once we turn on the means of heating.  Misting daily would be required, or have a humidifier running to keep a comfortable level of humidity.

Watering....timing is essential since they all prefer moist soils that drain well.  Water once the surface soil  dries to an inch deep (depending upon the size of the pot or container they are living in) This may be once a week or twice a week depending on how greedy the species is such as hibiscus.  

There is no way around the fact that they require all these things from you in order to survive until next year's planting season. 

Tropicals such as most of the bulb, or tuber type plants can be treated as you discribe with no watering, cool dark temperatures from winter to early spring.

Ron ~ zone 6b ~ Ontario

skbeal's picture

Most of those will not like

Most of those will not like nighttime outdoor temperatures that dip below  65  degrees. Likewise, they won't be happy in your house unless you keep it at 65 - 70 or warmer all the time. If you can't give them light from sun, full spectrum lights or plant lights work well in a pinch. You need to give them the same amount of light as there is daylight. You'll have to turn the lights on around 6 or so in the morning and then turn them off at around 6 at night......or later.

You should also plan to gradually acclimate them to the outside late in the spring by bringing them out during the day, and bringing them back inside at night. You'll also want to start fertilizing them then. These are like most tropicals -- they are fairly demanding of care. 

Susan,The Assistant Administrator, the Texas Yankee and the Texas Rangerette.