Keeping Outdoor Potted Plants Safe Over Winter (grow, lemon tree, nursery)

[kitty61]

Good old burlap wrap.

[movinon]

Originally Posted by mojo101

question-
I have an Aloe Vera plant which has grown HUGE outdoor in a large flower pot,it cant come indoor,so what should I do?
Can I cover it with clear plastic film?
itwould be difficult to move it,may be the garage?

I bring mine under the patio cover up by the house. The patio cover is part of the house - tile roofed - not a pergola. I cover them with old bed sheets. So far they've done fine. It's warmer there than in the garage in my location.

If the pot isn't on casters, you probably could carefully move it on a dolly. I have to move my very large kalanchoes that way - no way can I lift them and they aren't on casters since they normally live in a mulched bed sitting on stepping stones in their heavy pots.

Whatever you do, don't let the plastic touch the leaves! It will conduct the cold and damage the tender leaves.

I'm in zone 9b in Northern California, if that helps.

[Threestep2]

Originally Posted by kitty61

Good old burlap wrap.

Absolutely. We wrap ours in bubble wrap underneath and bring it a bit past plant top level. It gets miserably cold in OK.

[PhinneyWalker]

Originally Posted by Zoisite

There's a variety of things you can do to protect them on the balcony depending on the specifics of the plants and the balcony dimensions. If you've had them for years they likely won't do well indoors anyway, I've found they tend to become too susceptible to spider mites floating in the air when put into such a dry, warm, foreign environment after repeated years spent outdoors year round. But first things first in order of priority, provide me with a picture to see in my mind's eye or else post photographs of the roses as and where they are right now on the balcony.

Exactly how many is "several" pots of mini roses?

What average size are the plants in height and width above the soil line?

What size is each of the pots they're in - depth and width?

How long ago did you last prune them back severely, if ever?

Have they dropped all of their leaves for winter in preparation for winter dormancy or do they customarily keep most of their leaves evergreen through winter in your climate?

What is your growing zone?

Does any part of the balcony get exposure to direct sunlight at any time of the day?

Assuming there is a railing or privacy fence around the balcony, how high is the railing/fence?

Is the balcony covered? Does it have 3 walls, 2 walls or just 1 wall (the door to inside the apartment).

What floor are you on - ground level, 2nd or 3rd storey or higher?

Is there an electrical outlet outside on the balcony wall?

What are the exact dimensions of the balcony floor space - width and length?

.

I cannot provide all this information at the moment, but I can give you a few answers now.

I am in zone 8a or 8b. I have about 7 pots of these mini roses. They are planted in 6" or maybe 8" terracotta pots. I planted them in the terracotta pots from the small plastic pots they came in. The size of the plants above the soil is inline with the size of their pots, i.e. they are not drowning in space nor do they look root bound so far as I can tell. I have never pruned them as such. I deadhead the roses as needed. They are still blooming now in fact which surprises me. They still have plenty of leafs left.

The balcony faces south to slightly southwest, so it gets some sun pretty much all day long if it is not very cloudy or raining. There is an iron railing around the balcony which lets in tons of light, air, and rain if the wind blows in that direction. There are no walls per se on the balcony, just the back wall where the door opens onto the balcony. the balcony does have a roof, but the balcony overall is very "open." No electrical outlet.

The building was constructed in 1943 according to the landlord. I am on the first floor which is nice for the view, but a ground floor unit would have been better for me medically speaking. The plants do not seem to mind being on the first floor, but they of course have zero contact with the ground below. There are a lot of lilies planted around the building. I noticed last night they finally seemed to have suffered some severe frost damage, but up until a couple of days ago, the lilies looked quite good, too.

I have photos of the balcony, but apparently they are too "large" to attach to this post, and I have no idea how to "resize" them. Sorry. I can measure the balcony hopefully sometime before Christmas. I am still in the process of moving in.

[PhinneyWalker]

Originally Posted by grampaTom

You can wrap the pots in bubble wrap and set them on a piece of styrofoam. Also mulch the soil a couple of inches.

Good idea. How would water be able to drain if the pots are wrapped in bubble wrap, though? Should I poke some holes in the bubble wrap?

[PhinneyWalker]

Originally Posted by gentlearts

Perhaps nestle the pots in a bale of straw?

I might have too many of them to do that.

[PhinneyWalker]

Originally Posted by luv4horses

If your balcony faces southwest the afternoon sun will warm the side of the building and reradiate some of that heat somewhat at night so keeping the pots close to the living room wall helps.

However, wind is cooling so being out of the wind is best.

There is one wall so to speak that is the apartment and the door that opens onto the balcony. I cannot really call it a patio because it really is more of a balcony---not very deep at all. Unfortunately, they will get a good bit of wind. I have been making sure that they do not dry out. I worry about the soil being too wet, though, and the moisture possibly freezing and causing the terracotta pots to break.

[PhinneyWalker]

Originally Posted by Hemlock140

We have gotten down as low as 10F and my potted mini rose has done fine, it's blooming now despite being as low as 27F in the last week. It sits on a concrete patio, out in the middle. I have some other plants that are less hardy like Geraniums on the front porch, and those come in when below 30. I just lay down a plastic tarp in the entry so not too far to move them.

You might be able to do the same, bring them in from the balcony when it's expected to go below about 25F. If it doesn't get that cold there, I wouldn't worry about it. You didn't give you USDA Hardiness zone, ours is 8b.

Mine are still blooming, too. I guess there is hope for them if yours survives in its location. Thanks.

[PhinneyWalker]

Originally Posted by NORTY FLATZ

One nice thing about plants that are potted, is that they can be moved around, with the help of casters. Move them into the sun? Easy. Move into the shade? Easy.
A warmer OR colder area? Easy. A wetter or dryer area? You betcha. Just roll ‘em where ever you want them.

Since this is a thread, focused on minimizing cold exposure, some houses have heater vents that blow warm air outside. It seems to me that this could reduce cold exposure damage to some plants.

I wish mine did, but alas there are no vents.

[PhinneyWalker]

Originally Posted by twinkletwinkle22

There are ready-made plastic covered frames to protect plants, mini-greenhouses in other words. They come in all sizes on Amazon.

Also putting styrofoam block under the bottom of the pot will keep the roots from freezing because the root zone allows the plant to come back in the spring.

Someone living in very cold climate or on shady side of building might consider a stronger greenhouse, maybe clear acrylic or even glass.

My budget is very tight at the moment. Styrofoam might be the best answer. Now I am sorry I threw away so much of it that came in packages delivered to me. Drats!