Due to the exotic-looking flowers, many gardeners are often tempted to overwinter the imperial crown in a pot or as a dug-up bulb in the cellar. This can be exactly the reason for the resistant plants' lack of flowering.
Is the imperial crown hardy and what is the best way to overwinter?
The imperial crown is hardy and can overwinter in the outdoor bed if it is planted at the right depth (two to three times the bulb height). Overwintering indoors can affect flowering and is not ideal for plant development.
Disadvantages of wintering indoors
Basically, the imperial crown bulbs can survive overwintering in the cellar and sprout again when replanted in the garden. However, the constant digging disrupts the development rhythm of the plants, because even if they are moved outdoors frequently, they can react with a lack of magnificent flowers at the flowering time in spring. In addition, particular attention must be paid to the conditions in the winter quarters to ensure that there are no rot problems on the moisture-sensitive bulbs. The argument against overwintering indoors is:
- the space required
- the amount of work
- disruption of plant development
- the possible danger posed by poisonous onions
Conditions for overwintering outdoors
Overwintering directly in the outdoor bed is usually not a problem, even in harsh winters, if the bulbs have been planted in the ground at the right depth. The ideal planting depth for imperial crown bulbs should be approximately two to three times the bulb height. Since the imperial crown should be planted in relatively sunny locations anyway, this location factor results in a milder average temperature even in winter. However, the winter hardiness mentioned only refers to imperial crowns planted directly in the ground, as potted plants are much more exposed to the winter cold outdoors.
What you need to know about the growth of the imperial crown
The imperial crown regrows its leaves at the base of the flower stalk every year, just like the flowers themselves. Therefore, at the latest when the seeds ripen, the flower stalk wilts and later the leaves at the base die off. When caring for the flower beds in summer and autumn, only remove those parts of the imperial crown that have already withered or yellowed. This means the plants can still gain energy through their leaves and store it in the bulbs for the next year.
Tips & Tricks
For newly planted imperial crowns, we recommend planting the bulbs in the ground by August at the latest so that they can take root well before winter. For older imperial crown stocks, you should leave an approximately 10 centimeter long part of the stem standing over the winter. This will then be used for spatial orientation regarding the imperial crowns when working in the bed.
