Overwintering tropicals as houseplants

It's that time of year already; October is here and summer is officially over. Boooo!

Perhaps you have noticed a trend in my blogging... I am cheap (actually I prefer the term frugal). I used to buy tons of annuals in the spring to fill the pots around my yard, only to let them all die in the fall. It always seemed like such a waste of money, so I decided to start growing annuals from seed to fill my summer pots instead.

The problem with this is that they take so long to get large enough to fill the pots. Sure its cheaper, but you don't get the immediate satisfaction that comes with buying the plants that are already mature from a greenhouse.

Succulents in summer pots

Many of the plants that are sold by nurseries as annuals are actually tender perennials, which means that they would survive as perennials in warmer climates (for more details, read my Perennials -vs- Annuals blog post). Most of these plants would survive if protected from harsh winter climates, and many of them will survive as houseplants during the winter.

If you are a regular reader of my blog, you know that I like to experiment with gardening. So for the last few years, I decided to use houseplants and other tender plants to fill my summer pots.

I use plants that are easy to overwinter rather than buying/growing annuals every year. This way I can bring them into the house during the winter and have mature plants to put out in the spring without spending any money.

Bringing the plants into the garage

There is definitely work involved in bringing them inside in the fall, and putting them out in the spring. But if you think about it, it's probably not any more work than it is to repot all of the annuals into decorative pots, and then clean out all of those pots once the annuals die. Plus you get to enjoy the tropical feeling in the house all winter long!

Here are the steps that I take when I debug and clean plants to bring them inside for the winter (debugging potted plants)...

1. Give the plants a good watering and let the water drain.
2. Move all of the plants into the garage.
3. After dark, close the garage door and let off a bug fogger (which is an insecticide).
4. Leave the garage door closed overnight.
5. Open the garage door first thing the next morning and let it air out for a few hours.
6. Wash the outside of the pots with soapy water and bring the plants inside the house.

I use the bug fogger to kill any spiders and other bugs that are living on or in the plants, I don't want them living in my house. It has a double bonus because it also kills the spiders that live in the garage (I hate cobwebs in my garage!).

Tip: If you have a plant that is rootbound, repot it into a larger container before moving it inside. That way the mess stays outside.

So why not try bringing some of the outdoors in before frost hits your area.

Summer pots on bench

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