In the give , many of us buy those tried - and - on-key annuals that provide flowered interest all summertime long .
Think geraniums , violets , marigold , and of course , petunias . It ’s hard to imagine a trip-up to the nursery in the spring without picking up a hanging basketful ( or three ) sate with vibrant fuckup .
It ’s also a reliable mug of the coming winter when we foregather up those hanging baskets and convulse their mental object into the trash or the compost bin .
Photo by Kristine Lofgren.
What many gardener do n’t realize is that petunias are technically perennials . They ’re just highly tender , and ca n’t treat even the slightest suggestion of frost .
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So those of us inUSDA Hardiness Zones9 and below have to savvy them up once the first frost sweeps over our garden , if we hope to save them .
But you do n’t have to toss these perfectly good industrial plant ! If you make the exertion to keep them active throughout the wintertime , you ’ll be rewarded with even larger , more rich plants the following summer .
Plus , you’re able to salve a hunk of cash .
If you ’ve never overwintered an “ yearly ” flush like this before , do n’t experience overwhelmed . We ’ll walk you through the whole cognitive operation . Here ’s what you may expect coming up :
What You’ll Learn
There ’s a plenty to love about petunias , but what many gardeners miss is that you could really keep them around from one twelvemonth to the next , to bloom and thrive again . Let ’s figure out how !
A Bit About Petunias
Petunias ( Petuniaspp . ) are super common South American native plant that can be come up in most North American nurseries and home supply stores .
They come in a orbit of size ( grouped as grandiflora , Rosa multiflora , and milliflora , from largest to humble ) and in an sempiternal raiment of colors and rule ( Black ! Polka dit ! ) .
They can have an good ontogeny habit , or they may be vining or spreading types . We delve more into thedifferent types of petunias here .
you could find hybrids and cultivar that do best in container , while others arrive at a larger size and you could use a few to fill up in a garden bottom .
They involve lot of sun , well - draining soil , and moderate amount of body of water . And , as we ’ve note , theycan’t survive in cold weather . A hard freeze will kill them .
Read our in - depth petunia growing templet here .
But if you live in a colder realm and like to try out your hand at develop them as perennial nonetheless , you have option .
Propagation Is Also Worth a Shot
Before we stick out in to tackle the subject of winter care in more item , I ’ll even with you :
Petunias are n’t the best industrial plant for winter .
They ’re shocked by the move indoors , and they will belike sink their leaves . We ’re blab a actual plant life bloodbath with pile of foliar carnage .
If this happens , the goal is to keep the radical alive throughout the dormant time of year so the works can re - emerge , put on new outgrowth , and bloom again the next time of year .
If you have a petunia that you adore and you want to see to it it survive the winter , I wholeheartedly urge taking a cutting , or perhaps a few .
These plants propagate extremely well from slip , and you incline less of a risk of suffer an significant plant life if you go this route .
To take a cut , prune a six - column inch or long piece of stem and remove the leaves from the bottom half . Put the cutting in a seeded player - starting medium in a well - drain container .
Place it in a sunny windowpane where it will get at least six hours of sun each twenty-four hour period , and keep the soil moist but not soused .
It will explicate roots , and after spending the wintertime indoors , you’re able to establish it in the garden in the give .
But you’re able to also give winterize the integral parent plant a go as well . permit ’s take a look at the uncommitted methods .
Ways to Winterize
You have two option when it comes to winterizing a petunia flora .
The first is that you may put the plant into a state of sleeping somewhere that it ’s protected from frost , such as in a garage . The 2nd is to do by the genus Petunia as a houseplant , and keep it alive in a sunny spot indoors .
Keep in mind that most petunias are short - lived perennial , and will only return for about three year or so .
As Dormant Plants
This is the easy way to keep Petunia alive . While some plant , such asfuchsiasandgeraniums , respond well to indoor grow as houseplants , petunia can be a bit of a challenge to grow that way .
This is in part because these plants naturally go sleeping when the day get short , so you ’re squeeze them to acquire against their nature via hokey indoor conditions .
Once you know that there is a frost on the horizon , or temperatures set out to regularly drop below 40 ° F , school principal out of doors and trim your genus Petunia back . There should be no efflorescence give on the plant , and you should cut the stems back by at least a third .
If your petunia is n’t alreadygrowing in a container , you ’ll want to toil it up and strike hard or lave aside all of the soil from around the roots .
Examine the plant nearly for any signs of disease orpests . You might not see pests present since many hide or leave the plant when it ’s disturbed , so look for dung , eggs , or net .
You emphatically do n’t want to add these pests or disease pathogen into your plate , where they could taint any other plant you have inside .
transplantation into a container that will reconcile the root ball . It should be filled with fresh potting soil and have salutary drainage .
Now , you want to alleviate your plant into quiescence .
Place it in the sunniest patch inside that you could bring home the bacon . The plant should ideally be placed in full sun , but you canadd some grow lightsto append the useable born light if you need to .
hear to mimic the duration of daylight that your plant are currently experiencing outdoors , which mean gradually reducing the amount brightness level the flora is receiving .
At first , you also require to water as you normally would . bring down the amount by a flake each week so that a half - inch more of the soil feels dry between watering .
In other words , for the first week , the ground should palpate consistently moist . The next week , the top half - inch should be allowed to dry out . The following week , the top inch of soil should find ironic before you irrigate again , and so on .
All of the leaves of the plant will fall off within about a calendar month or two . It might not be pretty , but this is o.k. – the flora is still active , it has just gone torpid , focus its energy toward the roots rather than foliage or flowers .
At that point , stop lacrimation , dispose of any remaining leaf that have return , and move the pot to a dark location such as your service department or basement .
It should n’t be too warm , but your petunia should never freeze , either – a temperature somewhere around 40 to 50 ° F is ideal .
Now , it ’s time to let your plant rest . No extra watering or particular forethought is ask during dormancy , just be sure that your plants are supply the correct temperature and low - light conditions in their temporary surroundings .
overthrow the process about six weeks before the last predicted frost date in your region , bit by bit adding more piddle and placing the pot in an progressively sunny spot indoors .
Just as you bit by bit abridge the light to keep stride with the waning day outdoors , you want to expose the plant to step by step increasing measure of day each twenty-four hours .
That stand for putting it somewhere where it will receive a few hr of indirect light and an hour or two of direct sunlight ( or subsidiary light ) . Gradually increase this over a few hebdomad until it can sit in full daylight .
Once the last average frost date has passed for the yr , as long as there is no freezing weather in the forecast , harden the petunia off for a calendar week before putting it back outside full - time .
By this clock time , the plant should have fresh foliage and should start growing again .
indurate off command that you put the plant life outside in a protected situation with indirect sunlight for an hour , and then contribute it back indoors . The next daylight , give it an extra hour outside .
On the third daytime , add another hour , and so on , supply more time until it ’s able to tolerate a full twenty-four hours in the sun , and it ’s quick for its coming back to the great open air .
At this point , you’re able to deal your plant as you would any petunia in terms of providing water , fertilizer , and sunlight .
you could put it in the ground or repot it into a larger container . Because the plant was torpid , we were able to put it in a small container , but now that it ’s out of quiescency , it will postulate more room to maturate .
Ourguide to grow petuniashas all form of helpful baksheesh to ensure your works is utterly content in the garden .
As Houseplants
The nice matter about this method is that you get to go on love your petunias year - pear-shaped . But the challenge is that your plant is going to want to go inactive . Petunias call for a lot of Dominicus to grow actively .
Bring your plant inside as described in the section above , but do n’t prune it . Just remove any blossoms and utter leaf .
Put the pot in a cheery windowpane , and add a grow light to supplement the usable sunlight throughout the short Clarence Day of winter .
Your petunia needs at least 10 hour of light per day to preclude it from going sleeping , so if you do n’t get that amount of course in the wintertime , you ’ll demand to turn on the grow light for part of the day .
Keep the territory moist , with a texture that feel like a well wrung - out poriferan .
Fertilize every six workweek with an all - intent product suitable for container - grown flora .
This should keep your petunia produce all wintertime long ( albeit probably without any blossoms ) , but if it does happen to neglect its leaves , handle it as though it has become dormant , as described above .
Once the spring go far , you may harden the plant off and put it back outside .
Protect Those Petunias and Enjoy Them for Another Year
It ’s hard not to love petunias . They ’re prolific foul-up with petal in so many colors , patterns , and sizes that there ’s something available to beseem any space .
The biggest bummer is that they do n’t stick around when it gets chilly . But now that you ’ve learned our tips for overwintering , you do n’t have to give up a plant that you love .
And if you ’re seem to add even more colour to your garden , give these guide toannual flowersa understand next :
Photos by Kristine Lofgren © require the Experts , LLC . ALL right field RESERVED.See our TOSfor more item . Uncredited photos : Shutterstock .
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