I'm in Zone 5B and have some potted garden mums I purchased and wondering if it's too late to plant them in the ground? We had our first freeze last night and the highs this week are only in the 40's.

I also have a couple of grasses (burgandy) that were in a fall container I purchased and wondering the same thing. Can I plant them now in my perennial garden or is it too late?

Thanks so much for all your expertise! I'm learning but not fast enough :)

Best,
Lynn

Hi Lynn. The answer is complicated, even though it seemed like a pretty simple question.

Yes, its too late to plant if you expect plants to get a head start on rooting before cold weather. I live in Zone 6 and give up putting in new plants about Sept 1 - sometimes in August.

But... Mums will not survive the winter kept indoors so plant them and hope for the best. Leave all the dead leaves and flowers on and pile more leaves or pine needles on top.

I'm not sure about the grass. My thought is that you should plant it too. Overwintering is so hard. Protect these new plantings the best you can by piling leaves or whatever on their heads. The snow will insulate too.

Plants always do better in the ground than in a pot as the ones in the ground have the insulation of the entire earth.

Hi Daisy,

Thanks so much for your advice. I'll plant and mulch the mums and grasses tomorrow. Hopefully, we will have an easy winter with snow but no frigid, low temperatures.

Countdown to Spring.

Happy Gardening,
Lynn

Lynn - I think I would sink the plants, pots and all, into the ground for the winter rather than relying on roots getting established in a new planting hole. You could still pile on the leaves over the top of the plants.

Hi Cindy,

Great idea! It's worth a try and fingers crossed they will make it to Spring.

Thanks,
Lynn

I'm confused about why sinking pots where you want to plant is better than just planting. No, the plants probably won't have a chance to root this fall but they are were you want them and can start on the project this fall (if you have more warm days) or early next spring before you would normally plant.

No point disrupting roots systems that are acclimated to the pot or causing stress to the plant. Besides, if the hole for the pot is dug in the desired spot, it's just as easy in the spring to remove the plant from the pot and pop it in the ground.

I always end up overwintering quite a few plants that I've purchased or started from seed and then either never figured out where to plant them or "got around to" doing it; the overwintering generally takes place in my veg garden, where I just dig a hole and pop in the whole plant with its root ball; then, in the spring, if I'm still not ready to plant it in it's permanent location (at times this has gone on for several years ), I dig the plant back up and stick it back into a pot. My feeling is that leaving it in the pot and burying the whole thing is likely to cause issues with drainage and potentially kill the plant.

That's how the veg garden turns into a perennial garden around here temporary homes become permanent homes

Tried to find a link to whatever I read many years ago about fall planting, couldn't find it, but this is close anyway, at least as far as the concepts behind the value of it--
https://www.highcountrygardens...

Anyway, I'm a big fan of fall planting! In my area, summer planting is sure death; spring planting is risky if it gets too hot too soon; and fall planting, though not always a sure thing, generally gives better results for me. Soil temps lag behind air temps for quite awhile and many perennials--not needing to put forth top growth in the fall--will do some amazing root development giving them a significant advantage for the following summer. I don't really have a deadline, exactly, depends on the weather. I aim for trying to get stuff in prior to the first freeze, but I've planted as late as mid-to-late November with good success.
Depends on the plant(s) in question, of course, but mums and grasses have done very well with fall planting and transplanting here.

Drainage will be a problem ! Especially since most store bought plants are usually root bound. Just about any plant will grow some roots over winter, esp. mums, that are active in cool weather. When the sun comes out, during the winter, you can just about see the cool weather plants GROWING ! My dad would cut the mum's off, after they stopped blooming. They would start, immediately growing for next years bloom !!!

IF ! In early spring, you decide to move them. It won't be much of a shock to them 👍!!!
Id get em in ground ! LIKE ! Yesterday !!!
Bye ! Y'all ! 😎😎😎

I tried the potted mums in the ground once. I think the main concern is make sure that peat moss they grow in does not dry out. Once dried, it can resist getting wet again. Mine were too shallowly planted, and they dried.
Whether in pot or out-of pot generally being easier to keep watered, may be debatable. If the soil around tends to be dry, or have tree roots sucking up watering, in-pot might be better.