It's Time To Winterize Your Plants

At this time of year the weather in North America is wildly variable. As I write this, there are parts that are getting blasted by a winter storm and where I sit in Southern Arizona the weather is sunny and in the 70s. Not matter where you are sitting, it is time to get your plants winterized so they have the best chance to make it through to spring. Some of the following pointers may not pertain to your locale but others will, so take a moment to double-check your preparations.

CLEAN UP & REMOVAL

After a busy growing season, you will need to tidy things up in the fall. Now is the time to pull weeds, remove annuals and trim down perennials. Be sure to avoid cross-contamination and carefully dispose of any cuttings that may be harboring insects or diseases. Having said that, if your cuttings are clean it is best to leave some where they lie. A carpet of plant material offers insulation to plant and tree roots, provides shelter for bees and other desirable insects, and is the basis for rich soil in the spring.

A word about leaves:

Leaves will provide all of the above advantages and should not be removed completely. Just be sure to keep them away from the house. Undesirable insects can hide in leaf litter and migrate into the comfy warmth of your home once they get cold, but most can’t travel very far. Also, when considering your leaves please remember that they are 100% biodegradable and naturally a part of the season-change process, and that plastic is killing our planet. Please consider this thoroughly before raking up leaves and putting them in plastic bags to send to the dump.

MULCH

Mulch, whether commercially produced or made with your leaf litter and other materials, is an essential step in getting your plants through winter. It should be placed around plants, trees and shrubs. Be generous with it – you’ll want at least a 3-5 inch layer; and more if you live in cold country. Adding leaves, hay, straw, cornstalks and other no-compacting materials will create a more robust mulch. Save some mulch to add to your hibernating flower beds and gardens; extra organic matter in them now will pay off later.

CLOCHES

If you are worried about a sudden frost and/or have smallish plants in the ground to protect, consider the simple cloche. A cloche is a usually bell-shaped cover made of glass or plastic that you can plop over your plant. Cover the plant before nightfall and remove the cloche the next day so they utilize the sun. You can purchase cloches, but there are any number of items around your house that can be repurposed. Cloches are not a solution in super-cold regimes with hard frosts.

TREES

Trees take the first step in getting ready for winter by dropping their leaves. But we humans can take
further steps to help them get to spring. At this point in the season, a good tree wrap or frost protection bag can do a great deal to help a tree – they can temper the harsh environmental factors of winter, discourage nibbling mammals, and are an excellent barrier insect control (here are some wraps that ARBICO offers). Sunscald (caused by warm daytime temperatures that drop way down after dark), winter burn (caused by water loss through foliage) and damage caused by snow, ice and animals are all serious threats to tree health. This article gives some succinct and helpful steps to take to reduce the risk from these factors. For more on how winter affects tree, here is my blog on just that from December 2020. 

CONTAINER PLANTS

Because the sides of a pot are exposed to the elements, container plants are very vulnerable and often not able to survive the winter. If possible, bring them inside to an area that gets sufficient sunlight. Before you bring in any plant from the outside, be certain it is insect-free so that you are not introducing problem into your home. If you have large containers that cannot be moved, your best bet is to bundle them up by wrapping layers around them. This could be anything from burlap to fabric to even bubble wrap (the air in the bubbles makes a surprisingly good insulator). Another option is to remove the plant and either replant it inside or put it in a spacious container where the soil around it can act as an insulant. You may want to hedge your bets and still wrap this larger container. 

TROPICALS & HOUSEPLANTS 

Many of the houseplants that people love are native to tropical environments. This is also true of many of the popular plants and grasses used in landscaping and patio décor. All of which means that they will not survive outside in the cold. When used in outdoor settings, these types of plants should be considered as annuals. If you are not okay with having them die or having to replace them, it is probably best to not use them in the first place. Re-locating them inside may work in some instances, but you will need to provide a place that gets lots of sunlight all year round and has a stable temperature. This can be problematic since the level of sunlight goes down in the winter and the temperature inside a winter home can be all over the place. These caveats for tropical plant care extend to houseplants, as most of them are tropical as well. To further understand the particular winter needs of plants inside homes in the winter, please refer to my blog on the subject here. 

You should keep watering your plants as usual right up until you get a hard frost. The same can be said for most garden chores. And when you get your first snow, your well-tended garden will have a strong chance of coasting through it all (read more here).

Take Care

Submitted by Pam

 

10 Great Plants That Need A Good Home

If you are deep in the throes of Plant Parenting (or just a Plant Lover), you are probably always looking for a new plant to add to your collection. I would like to suggest the following 10 candidates. These plants aren’t wildly new; in fact, you’ve probably seen most of them before. But give them a second look anyway - even the smallest, scrawniest brown dog in the pound has untold stories to share with you.

These are not in any particular order and I have thrown in a mix of types to (hopefully) offer something for everyone. Additionally, they are all fairly-easy to very-easy to grow, for those people whose eyes are bigger than their
nurturing skills. With the exception of the Fiber Optic Grass, this selection consists of tropical plants and several of them are toxic to a degree. While that should not necessarily disqualify them, it is something to consider for many people. I have also included links to more information on caring for them, so you can get the low-down quickly.

BRAZILIAN FIREWORKS (Porphytocoma pohliana) – aka Rose Pine Cone, Purple Shrimp, South African Acanthus, Jade Magic, and more. This South American native is nearly as flashy as a Carnival night in Rio. It's an evergreen with deep green leaves laced prettily with silver veins. But it’s the flowers that steal the show – they have fuchsia-colored bracts that clash beautifully with its small purple true flowers. The fireworks name may come from this explosion of color, but this plant also forcefully shoots out its seeds when the time is right. For more insight into this exceptional plant, check out this blog.

NERVE PLANTS (Fittonia argyroneura) – aka Fittonia, Mosaic Plant, and Net Plant. This plant comes from deep in the rainforests of South America. The foliage has an olive green background contrasted with bright veins of pink, white or red – the color variations seem endless. These low-growing plants are perfectly suited for a wide range of growing situations from tabletops to cover crops. Nerve Plants are very forgiving should you forget to water them - they can bounce back quickly. Check it out on this time-lapse video. Read more about these tropical beauties here and see more here.

STAGHORN FERNS (Platycerium spp) – aka Elkhorn Ferns and Antelope Ears. This fern is native to the jungles of Java, New Guinea and parts of Australia. What makes this plant unique (besides its antler-like foliage) is that it is both an air plant and a fern. Since this plant grows on tree trunks and rocks in its native habitat, it’s commonly mounted on a surface and then displayed on a wall or fence. This presentation can amplify the resemblance to antlers. But it can also be grown in a traditional pot and enjoyed as a hanging plant. Here’s more on this cool plant and here’s a tutorial on how to mount it.

AECHMEA BLUE RAIN (Aechmea spp) – aka Blue Rain Bromeliad. This stunner has its roots in Brazil and is decidedly low maintenance (which is probably not the case with other Brazilian stunners). This bromeliad only flowers once, but the flamboyant blue-violet flowers on orange spikes will last for months. After blooming, pups will appear around the mother plant. These pups will feed off their mother plant until it has deteriorated and they are big enough to produce blooms. Nature can be hardcore. Here’s more on this beautiful plant and here’s something to watch.

BUTTERFLY PLANT (Christia obcordata) – aka Swallowtail Plant. This herbaceous perennial is from East Asia and can grow up to 3 ft. tall. The exquisite triangular-shaped leaves with burgundy stripes are real show-stoppers. To some people, they look like the veining on a bird’s tail feathers, while others think they resemble butterflies at rest. However you see it, this is a spectacular addition to any plant collection. For more on the Christia obcordata, read this. For a little something on a different variety, Christia vespertilionis, check out this video.

AFRICAN MASK PLANT (Alocasia Sanderiana) – aka Kris Plant and Elephant Ear. These tropical plants have no connection to Africa, they are native to the Philippines, but they look like African ceremonial masks to enough people to have the name stick. This plant brings the drama with forest green leaves that have wide, stripe-like veining. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the Alocasia Sanderiana is critically endangered in its native environment, so in growing this plant you are literally helping to save a species. Here is more information and here is an interesting video.

FIBER OPTIC GRASS (Isolepis cernua) – aka Livewire, Live Wire of
Fairy Lights. This fun plant is reminiscent of those funky fiber optic lamps. It’s a clumping plant with small flower spikes on the end of thin, bright-green stalks. Not technically a grass (it’s part of the sedge family), one variety or another is native to wide areas of the globe. Fiber Optic Grass is a multi-purpose plant in that it does well in most areas indoors or outdoors, in the ground or in containers. And it makes a captivating hanging plant. More on this delightful plant here and, if you are interested in planting it outside, check this out.

ALUMINUM PLANT (Pilea cadierei) – aka Watermelon Pilea. This alluring plant is originally from China and Vietnam, but it has found a place in homes worldwide due to its non-demanding nature. This smallish (6”-12”) evergreen will grow out umbrella-fashion and produce deep green pointed leaves patterned with silver markings that shine like tinfoil. This plant is very desirable for its beauty and easy care. The ASPCA has endorsed this plant as a non-toxic choice for animal lovers. To learn more, go here or watch this video.

PURPLE SHAMROCK (Oxalis triangularis) – aka False Shamrock and Love Plant. This gorgeous Brazilian is more than just a pretty face – it has moves! It will turn its leaves to and follow the light during the day and then close them up when night falls. It can also retreat. Let me explain: The Oxalis triangularis grows from a group of bulbs and when conditions above the soil deteriorate enough, the plant will allow some die back and then wilt and pull back into its bulbs until conditions improve. Like the Butterfly Plant, many people think this purple stunner resembles a swarm of butterflies at rest. This plant is toxic, but it has a very bitter taste that works well as a deterrent for most nibbly pets. Here’s more on this beauteous plant and here’s a video.

HARDY TAPIOCA (Manihot grahamii) – aka Graham’s Cassava, Graham’s Manihot, and Hardy Cassava. Pick this South American beauty if you have the space for a tall statement piece. It’s dramatic leaves and long, elegant shape will really pop in a sunny corner. It may come to you small, but it can easily grow several feet in a year and will eventually top out at around 10 feet. If you live in a warm climate you can turn it into an outside tree – the bees will appreciate it; they love the pale yellow flowers. The leaves and roots are poisonous, which will keep wild animals away if it’s outside but that may be a concern if you have pets. There’s more information here and a video on a different variety here.


As a reminder: We have great products to help keep your houseplants happy and healthy here.

I hope I have inspired you to commit to one of these delightful plants. If you already have amazing examples, send us pictures. If you plant some after this, send us pictures. Spread the beauty.

Submitted by Pam