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Geraniums ( Pelargonium ) are coloured perennials you’re able to fleck from a mile away , and they ’re one of theeasiest plants to overwinter . You cangrow them in pots , have them in your garden , and evenplace them on your balcony . With more than 250 species of floral and leafage mixed bag , geraniums are fearless to Zone 10 , but you may also find other varieties grow in Zone 7 and 8 .
They necessitate full Sunday and moist , well - draining ground to expand . So , unless you treat them as annual , move your geraniums indoorsbefore the nighttime temperatures fall below 55 degree Fahrenheit . During cold month , you should spring up your geraniums indoors to aid them endure inhuman months . Below you ’ll take the different ways to winter them for the next blooming time of year .
6 Ways to Overwinter Geraniums
1. Bring Them Indoors
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you could winter geranium indoors , so long as you transfer them from your garden before the first icing . Whenoverwintering them indoors , place them in a sunny location , preferably south or west - front window sills , during dusty weather .
If you do n’t get inviolable , natural light in your home , invest ingrow lightsthat you may use to assist your geraniums during prospicient , clouded wintertime . Maintain daylight temperature between 65 and 70 grade Fahrenheit and keep nighttime temperatures at 55 degrees Fahrenheit .
How long should your flora remain under the grow igniter ?
rank your geranium 12 inch under a 40 - watt grow light bulb for 12 - 16 hr day by day to see some deviation .
2. Take Cuttings
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Takecuttings as an alternativeif you ca n’t bring the total geranium flora within for the wintertime . Using a shrill scissor , take 3 to 4 - column inch prow cut from the terminal end of the geranium shoot . Pinch the bottom leaves of each cutting off before dipping the base in a rooting hormone .
commit the film editing in vermiculite take root media or a bog moss peat moss and perlite mixture . Choose stiff or charge plate rooting containers with drainage holes on the bottom . Afterplacing your cuttings in the pot , add your preferred rooting intermixture and softly bear on it down to keep the press clipping in place . This will also avail remove any air gaps . Mist water twice a day for a couple of days before returning to your regular watering schedule .
Remember to examine your rooting premix for moisture to avert under or overwatering your cutting . Place your newly planted cuttings in a elbow room with plenty of indirect light but not direct sunlight . To prevent your cuttings from droop , place a large transparent pliant bag or a large charge card bottle over your cut to create a impermanent greenhouse upshot .
How long until the geraniums begin to settle down ?
It would take anywhere between six to eight week for your geraniums to take root . Once they develop levelheaded base , mildly hit them from the rooting spiritualist and engraft them in separate sens .
3. Hard Pruning
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Taking it a whole tone further than using cuttings , you could choose to hard prune your geranium plant . Hard pruning is when you ignore the entire plant to around 3 to 6 in from the ground before any foliation emerge . The pruning clock time will count on the geranium species you ’re dealing with .
However , you canprune after floweringor in late fall . Pruning after flowering minimizes stress on the plant , allowing it to direct vigor into the growth of novel stems . The higher the pruning ( larger size or issue of limbs eliminated ) , the with child the regeneration that follows .
Remove any dead , damaged , musty , unhealthy , or diseased plant parts when pruning . If the plant is otherwise respectable , pull through limbs with buds or blossoms .
4. Pinch Back Shoots
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Pinching can determine your geranium and further the plant to develop more foliage and blooms . All you need to do is literally pinch and remove tender growth at the last of the stem . you could utilise sharp scissors or shears to cut the top tender ontogeny to store your manicure !
think of to purloin as closely to the leaf client as potential without harming neighboring bud . Your plant will render two new prow beneath the apprehension or write out every time you take away the primary stems .
Woman hand holding stem of geranium to cut it by scissor to make stalk to plant it
5. Potting up Individual Plants
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Before the first fall frost , cautiously turn over up each plant and localise it in a big container . After giving each plant plenty of piss , set the geraniums in a windowpane with plenty of natural or artificial illumination .
Your plants can experiencetransplant shock , but with proper guardianship , they ’ll recoil back in a few sidereal day . Place your geraniums in a cool room that does n’t get too much direct sunlight . The idealistic temperature range of a function is between 65 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit and 55 degree Fahrenheit at dark .
Woman hand holding stem of geranium to cut it by scissor to make stalk to plant it
For the first few days , mist your fresh - transplanted flora twice a mean solar day before reelect to your even watering schedule . Invest in agood soil moisture testerto know when your plant life ask a drink to avoid under and overwatering .
Will the geranium grow out of control in the wintertime ?
If your geranium has originate improbable and lanky by the end of winter , prune the plant life in early spring and repress it to 2/3 of its previous tiptop . Continue irrigate them , and they ’ll presently regrow their leafage before blossom again .
geraniums in pots on the windowsill. cut stems of geranium flower prepared for winter hibernation
6. Overwinter Them as Bare-Root Plants
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cautiously dig your geraniums out before the first pin frost . After digging out your works , softly shake the soil off your plant ’s roots and wrap one or two plant in a large paper bag . Store the pocketbook in a elbow room with an ideal temperature of about 50 degrees Fahrenheit , like a service department , shed , cellar , or unheated basement .
Every month , remove the plant from the grip and soak the roots in water supply for a couple of hours . Let them dry out and once they ’re whole juiceless , lay in them again in the great report bag . A hefty plant ’s leaves may wither and fall , but the bow will continue green and loyal ; however , if the stalk dries up , the plant wo n’t subsist . In this case , you canadd it to your compost pile .
plucking tea leaf by hand
In spring , carefully inspect your geranium , remove shrivel and wry parts , cut dead tips , and soak your works ’s roots in urine mixed with plant food for a few hours . Next , peck a sight with drainage holes , implant the roots inrefreshed potting soil , and urine good .
For a match of days , place your plant away from unmediated sunlight , and after that , you’re able to range it under a grow light or in a sunny location . If your flora is healthy , it ’ll resile back and turn . Then , you’re able to move the flora outdoors a week after the last frost .
Don’t Stop Be-leafing
Geraniums are a gardener ’s delectation due to how depressed criminal maintenance they are and the ease with which they fly high in various growing sensitive . Overwintering is an in force elbow room of preserving their blooming potential for the next growing season .
Leave your experiences , thoughts , and doubtfulness in the comment section , and as always , please partake in !
felicitous Gardening !
