How to Overwinter Your Plants and Garden

Overwintering Roses, Geranium, Rosemary, and More Plants

 

Learn how to properly overwinter your garden plants to keep them protected from snow, wind, and freezing temperatures. They’ll thank you in the spring!

How to Overwinter Geraniums

Before the first frost (find frost dates for your region here), cut plants back to about 6 to 8 inches. Then lift the plants and cut back the roots. Put the trimmed plants in the smallest pots possible—containers just large enough to fit the roots. Fill the remaining space in the pot with regular potting soil. Keep the plants in the shade for a week and then place them in a sunny spot indoors. When new growth starts, cut off all the old leaves.

How to Overwinter Rosemary

This culinary herb prefers life in a pot and can successfully survive as a houseplant from year to year.
Before a frost in the fall, dig it up, plant it in a pot, and bring it indoors. Place it in a sunny window and keep it evenly watered. Mist the leaves frequently or place the entire plant in the shower and give it a good rinse once a month. The plant may start to look a little tired by March, but it will perk up once you return it to the garden. Dig a hole in the late spring, after all danger of frost has passed, and set the plant back into the soil.
Learn more about overwintering rosemary.

How to Overwinter Roses

Roses need thick insulation to help them stay dormant. For those that are grafted, such as hybrid teas, make sure that their graft unions are covered with soil to insulate them from low temperatures. After a freeze or two, mound 12 inches of soil around the base of the rosebush.
Nongrafted roses, such as rugosas and antiques, don’t need much protection. Just mulch the ground around them with a couple of inches of straw or shredded leaves.https://www.almanac.com/extra/how-overwinter-your-plants-and-garden?trk_msg=31NTUF6B568KBDPBHPRVH8QJH4&trk_contact=EEBLFVJ2I0VAQT9EM5JFVJAK9O&trk_sid=MAMTJLFF28651C3MG9P7RF7NF0&utm_source=Listrak&utm_medium=Email&utm_term=How+to+Overwinter+Your+Plants+and+Garden+(title)&utm_campaign=Companion+Daily