| Please give me some information on how I can winter over my mandevilla plant. It currently lives on my patio. I would like to bring it in the house for the winter. Is there any special care I should take to winter it over. Thank you! Sylvia Plumley |
| moss to store as one would store cannas for the winter. This would be in a cool dark location (say 50 degrees) and in a paper bag or cardboard box, check on it periodically to make sure it is not moldy indicating it is too wet (dry it off a bit and repack in clean new material) and not shriveling indicating it is too dry (sprinkle with water to rehydrate slightly). Repot in early spring and place in a bright location to resume growth. In all cases they would need to be gradually reacclimated to being outside next spring and summer. The switch from outdoors to indoors and vice versa should be done gradually to avoid shocking the plant and allow it time to adjust. Be sure to check it carefully for pests before you bring it inside. Some gardeners will wash the plant thoroughly and possibly treat it with insecticidal soap once or twice about a week apart just to be sure it is clean, once indoors it can be tough to control any pesky little hitchhikers. It takes some experimentation to locate the most ideal conditions depending on the possibilities you have in your home. I hope it works out for you. Good luck with your mandevilla! moss to store as one would store cannas for the winter. This would be in a cool dark location (say 50 degrees) and in a paper bag or cardboard box, check on it periodically to make sure it is not moldy indicating it is too wet (dry it off a bit and repack in clean new material) and not shriveling indicating it is too dry (sprinkle with water to rehydrate slightly). Repot in early spring and place in a bright location to resume growth. In all cases they would need to be gradually reacclimated to being outside next spring and summer. The switch from outdoors to indoors and vice versa should be done gradually to avoid shocking the plant and allow it time to adjust. Be sure to check it carefully for pests before you bring it inside. Some gardeners will wash the plant thoroughly and possibly treat it with insecticidal soap once or twice about a week apart just to be sure it is clean, once indoors it can be tough to control any pesky little hitchhikers. It takes some experimentation to locate the most ideal conditions depending on the possibilities you have in your home. I hope it works out for you. Good luck with your mandevilla! |
