In autumn it is time to prepare your potted plants for the winter, sooner rather than late, depending on their type. Hardy plants can spend the winter outdoors if properly prepared, but sensitive ones need suitable winter quarters.
How can I winterize potted plants?
To make potted plants winter-proof, you should bring sensitive plants into their winter quarters early, water evergreen plants in winter and avoid pruning. Root balls should be protected from frost and frost-hardy plants should be insulated. Do not fertilize from August onwards.
What do I need to protect potted plants from?
Sensitive potted plants should not only be protected from frost, but also from excessive moisture and cold wind. It is therefore important to bring them to suitable winter quarters in good time. Depending on the temperature sensitivity of the individual plants, this can be quite early in autumn.
Excessive moisture is often a problem in mild winters that is not always recognized in time. Then the roots quickly rot and the plant dies. In icy winds, however, plants freeze to death even at temperatures well above freezing. When overwintering in the garden, it is best to choose a place that is well protected from wind and rain.
Do frost-hardy plants need winter protection?
You should also treat your frost-hardy potted plants to winter protection. The root ball in particular can freeze surprisingly quickly. Therefore, pack the plant pot warmly. Air-permeable material such as jute sacks or an old blanket are often more suitable than impermeable bubble wrap, especially if you are wrapping parts of the plant.
Does pruning in autumn make sense?
Pruning in autumn makes sense if you want to move the plant in question to winter quarters with little space. Otherwise, you should not cut back your potted plants before overwintering. On the one hand, the green serves as additional winter protection, but on the other hand, for example with Miscanthus, it can also be very decorative.
The most important things in brief:
- do not fertilize from August onwards
- bring sensitive plants to their winter quarters early
- pay attention to suitable lighting conditions in the winter quarters
- Avoid pruning in autumn if possible
- Protect root balls from frost
- water evergreen plants even in winter
Tip
If you winterize your potted plants in good time, you'll definitely have a lot of fun with them next year.
