Those of you that live in colder claimants what's your experience with over wintering daylilies in pots? Recommend it or don't recommend it?

Im also keen on this question. I have about 25 5gal pails to try out if it can be done....

I am in zone 4 and don't recommend it, I gave it a try on a few and they didn't survive. They just do much better in the ground planted in the spring so they have time to acclimate long before cold weather.

coldlime! You will love it here! There are some really experienced knowledgeable people on this site and I am sure one of them will post a reply.

Well these would be Fall plantings. I don't really want to put them in the dl bed because I am not planning on keeping them. They would be sold next spring and put in pots anyway. Was just hoping I could pot them up when received....

I tried it for the first time last winter. I had about l0 pots that I just didn't get around to planting. I had very good luck over wintering them. I think I only lost l pot. I put them under my blue spruce tree, tipped them on their side and totally covered the pots with mulch and they made it through one of the worst winters we had had in years. I can't remember when I did this but I believe it was late October or early November.

That's a good idea Cindy! I may try something like that. Surely we won't have another Arctic Tundra Winter this year (hoping anyway).

From what I remember others saying on this subject it depends on the kind of winter cold: wet with lots of snow that stays around; dry windy cold; wet then dry then wet again, etc.; heaving can be a problem if you get wet then frozen.

Insulating the pots with mulch or something is a good idea. I have also heard of people planting in pots, then "planting" the pot in a hole that you can remove later.

Good luck. Also be aware that just because it worked last winter you cannot always count on it working the next. I had many plants in pots that had overwintered for several years in a row. Last winter was very cold for our zone 7b in Huntsville and I lost over 1/2 that were in pots and even some that had been in the ground for several years (not newly planted ones.)

I agree with Cindy. Turning the pot on its side is the secret to avoid crown rot. The rot is caused by heaving, adding standing water in the pot because there is ice in the pot that blocks drainage.

I learned about this from potting hundreds of hostas that overwinter in my zone 5, almost zone 4. I wait until Thanksgiving Day to tip them over because they will be dormant.

With daylilies, I certainly would ad mulch. Do not be in a hurry to stand them up, but do remove the mulch before the pot becomes too hot and causes rot.

I can chime in on my experience this past winter. It started out well but did not end well for me and I ended up losing a lot to rot.

I had them in my unheated porch from around November 15. I think it was the combination of the cold spring and wetness that did them in. I was too eager to get them out and growing and that spelled disaster for me. The ones that I pulled from the porch in March and put under lights inside did magnificently so I have no reason to suspect it was the cold. If I were going to do it again I would put them on their sides and cover them with straw and leaves.

Thanks for all the replies! I thought about putting them in pots and then the pots in the ground but they could still heave that way, correct? Not like I am out of space may be I'll just plant them in the ground and dig them up come Spring.

Plants can heave even if they are planted in the ground - though I think that is still your best bet. More work, yes, but there is no rest for the addicted.

JWWC said:but there is no rest for the addicted.

Thanks James! It's just mildly Full Blown, no worries.

I have some very large clumps of day lillies that have been overwintering during the past several years and have always bloomed again in the spring. I think that they become quite hardy. I live in southern Connecticut so we can get close to frozen ground but so far so good.

I might be overwintering pots again this year. Just haven't had time to plant the seedlings with so many other things going on.

Cindy, I know that feeling! Plus it's been so rainy here all Summer I have had the hardest time getting some things in the ground. I really wasn't planning on leaving them in pots but if I can't get them all in the ground they will have to stay in the post for the winter.

Welcome hughesdavi.

hughesdavi!

Good organic fertilizer can help make any plant stronger and more resistant to cold weather.

Most of my daylilies will be planted directly in the ground.
Pots are nice, but for me, ground planting seems best overall.

So Cat, that is where all the rain was this Summer. We were very dry this year. We can normally depend on a few Tropical storms or Depressions to provide during the hottest part of the year, but not this year. On the other hand, we only had 2 days where temps were over the century mark, also unusual. Never can tell i guess.
Bob