Hi

Can you please tell me if I can put my daylily seedings, which are 3 or 4 inches high and have 2 or 3 leaves, in my unheated garage where the temp. is still only just above freezing (maybe between 35 and 40 degrees)? I'm running out of room in my other spot where it's around 50!

thank you so much for your help!!
Kathy

I haven't grown them from seeds but I'll bump this up. Someone should know.

Hi Kathy! @pinkruffles

I'm not sure my experience will be close enough to what you are hoping to do, but there may be enough parallels to help you decided, or wait until someone with an exact match (or just more experience) comes along to respond.

If you are opening and closing the garage door, there may be times when the temp drops below freezing, and depending on whether it is detached or attached garage, it may not re-heat very quickly inside. But, I wintered my seedlings (similar size and leaf number) through 28 degree weather last year, though it was outside and they had a lightweight frost blanket over them and were surrounded by larger potted plants to help hold in some heat. So, finding a way to insulate their area in the garage like that might be helpful. Even a blanket of some sort that is draped so that it does not bend or crush the leaves can help keep any possible frost from forming on, and damaging, the seedlings and keep them from cold, gusty winds that can enter when the door is open.

My seedlings did not get much sunlight, but they did get indirect sun every day (northern shaded side of house) so it helps if their time in the (possibly) dark garage is temporary, or is helped if there are windows in the garage. Mine did not grow much but nearly all survived (98%?), and the ones that didn't make it were lost only after warmer weather returned, and was more likely due to spring stress. That might be avoided by tilting the pots at a slight angle so that any moisture in the soil will drain well, from what I've heard of others who partially winter their full-sized daylilies in a garage.

Hope this helps ... if no one shows up with a better parallel to your situation, you are most welcome to come to the Daylily Forums to ask your question, too. It is a warm and welcoming group that has lots of great experience to share. http://garden.org/forums/view/...

Kathy,

The scenario that you describe is not suitable for your seedlings. However, if you add a light set-up that also provides some warmth, the plants will grow well. You do need temperatures aboven50°.

Depending on how many containers you have, you should place them near a window in your home. Mine grow well where I have home plants growing though the winter.

Thank you so much for your help--all of you! I am quite new to this site so I am trying to figure out how to use it!
Tee, what does that mean when you say you will 'bump up' my post?
Tina and Gerry, thank you so much for your helpful advice!! I forgot to say, when I posted my question, that the seedlings will be under 2 florescent shop lights. I'm not sure how much warmth they generate though, and I had not thought about the fact that every time I have to move the car in or out, the temp. will change!
I will take your kind suggestion Tina, to post my question on the daylily forum, which would have been a better place for it

Pinkruffles, when threads are closed or aren't being posted to, they drop down in the list. When you post something to a thread, that brings it back to the top so people will see it and know it's still active. I hope that makes sense?

If you have a heated mat and proper lighting it might work out OK.
I have overwintered in an unheated garage before "NE Wisconsin" but never with new seedlings.
Is there anyway you could make a tent with plastic and use a regular light bulb inside of it to keep things a bit warmer?
It would have to be the old heat creating type light bulb.
Just a few ideas.