YORKTON - Did you bring in some plants to over-winter? There’s the prep work that gets done before the plants come indoors: checking for pests, checking for disease, possibly spraying plants, possibly trimming them back.
Then they come indoors, and after all that TLC, you’d think they’d be looking their best. But sometimes they seem to go into a slump. I did some homework about it and this is what I learned.
Moving plants indoors, even though it is for their future survival, is a shock. The light is different from where they have been growing outdoors, and so is the temperature. As gardeners we should try our best to place the plants in a light situation that was similar to outdoors as much as possible. But still, it is different and will take them a while to adjust. And we have to remember that as the days get shorter, the plants will be receiving less light.
Another thing that will be a shock to our plants is the temperature variance. They are not used to central heating! We should make sure that our plants are not placed in a spot near a heat register, or near a spot where a chilly blast of air will hit them anytime someone opens a door. These extremes will set the plants back.
The plants will also have to adjust to a change in moisture levels. It is interesting, I read that we should cut back on their water. Why? This season will be a period of rest for the plants, and they don’t need as much water as they did outdoors in the summer when they were actively growing. I read that a good guideline is to water when the top inch or so of soil is dry. Later on, as spring is getting closer and the days are longer, we can gently increase the amount of water they get. There is no need for fertilizing our plants at this point, since we want them to relax and put their energy into adjusting to being indoors.
And good news—I read that leaf drop is a normal thing! I think we are inclined to believe that if the leaves start dropping, we are doing something wrong. But some leaf drop is a normal reaction to the plant’s new environment. Of course, we have to be watchful and if there is an excessive amount of leaves hitting the tabletop, we might have to check if the plant is too wet, too dry, perhaps diseased, or suffering from temperature or light problems. Gardeners have to be ever-vigilant: our work is never done!
I know some gardeners have solariums or sun-rooms that helps make the adjustment a lot easier for the plants. They might have a higher over-wintering success rate than those of us who bring in our plants and try to fit them in wherever there is room! But it is always fun to try. We may not have 100% success, but we tried! Gardening is a matter of knowing what to do when, but it is sometimes also a matter of things just working out right, often by chance and good luck!
I hope that you recorded, or will record, the successes and disappointments of this year’s garden in your garden notebook. Do it while that information is still fresh in your mind!
The Yorkton and District Horticultural Society will not be having any general meetings until March 2025. (The group will be having one more meeting, their AGM, for members only). But visit the group at www.yorktonhort.ca.
Thank you to our friends at YTW for their continuing great work. Gardeners, have a good week, and continue those daily garden tours and take note of the beauty in the autumn garden that is getting ready for rest.
