I was in Quebec City for a short five-day trip for my brother’s 60th birthday. We had a very nice family reunion. The end of September to early October is apple picking in many farms and Orleans Island just outside the city is one of the favourite sites.
I had a few calls regarding overwintering geraniums.Geraniums actually make decent houseplants, if you can provide them with lots of bright light. They like a cool temperature, so if you keep your thermostat low, they should be happy. But they’ll start to look gangly and gawky if you don’t provide enough light. A bright west or south facing window or grow lights are crucial. Just don’t keep the plants too close to a window that gets a draft.
Bring your plants indoors before the first frost (now). Check your geraniums closely for signs of insects or disease. Dig and pot up healthy plants with good potting soil and prune them back by about 1/2. It may seem harsh, but it will help them adjust in the long run. Give them a good dose of water when you first bring them in, then allow the soil to dry out between waterings. Geraniums seem to like a little drought stress; it keeps them blooming more frequently. Keep an eye out for the usual indoor pests like aphids, spider mites and fungus gnats. I will treat mine with insecticidal soap. If your geranium is happy, it will continue to grow and bloom, although not as well as it does outdoors in summer. If it looks like it’s struggling to stay alive, consider letting it go dormant until spring.
A cool, unheated basement is ideal for storing dormant geraniums. And this is one time when a slightly damp basement is a plus. You want a storage spot where the geraniums will stay cold, but above freezing, where they’ll remain in the dark and where they won’t dry out completely.
Potted Storage: pot up your geraniums and allow the soil to dry out. Cut plants back by about half. Top each with an overturned paper bag. Store in a cool, dry location.
Root Storage: Dig geraniums before first frost. Cut plants back by about half. Shake off as much soil as you can from the roots. Either hang plants in a cool, dark room or place in paper bags. If you opt for bags, don’t seal them tightly. You want some air to circulate. If you opt to hang geraniums, make sure there is enough space between plants for air to circulate.
Check every few weeks to make sure the plants are not drying out completely. If they are, spray them with water or slightly water the root area. Allow the plant to dry off before replacing the paper bag. About six weeks before the last expected frost, bring your geraniums back into indirect light. If they’re bare root, pot them up. Bare root plants can also be soaked in water for several hours before potting, to re-hydrate the roots.
Jocelyne Sewell is The Morning Star’s gardening columnist, appearing every other Wednesday.
