Gardeners’ Forum: “Geraniums - Winter Storage”
Back to Gardeners’ ForumGeraniums - Winter Storage
Posted by Ray Browne on Friday, October 12, 2001 4:18 pm ADTWhat is the proper way to preserve Geranium plants over winter and how does one revive them next spring?
re: Geraniums - Winter Storage
Posted by Betty on Friday, November 2, 2001 8:52 pm ASTI've had good luck with two methods. The easiest is to cut your plant back in the fall, put it in a dark place that hovers above freezing, and then in April remember where you put it, bring it into the light, and water it. I'm in zone 4 and sometimes 5, so the April date may not apply to you. Another way is to take cuttings in the fall and root them in dirt - this works better for me than rooting them in water. For this method you need a window with direct southern exposure.
re: Geraniums - Winter Storage
Posted by Janet Fraser on Monday, January 7, 2002 11:41 pm ASTWe have been taking cuttings for years and growing them over the winter...but recently my father experimented with rooting the cuttings in water in a dark container and it worked very well. You can also save whole plants by digging them up entirely, washing the dirt off the roots and turning upside down in a paper bag..tie the bag at the top leaving the roots exposed..put in a fruit cellar or cool dark place.You can put several plants in one bag. In January we replant them in a pot and put in a sunny window..if they get too large before planting time you can take more cuttings! Happy gardening..Janet Fraser, Cayuga, Ontario
re: Geraniums - shrub
Posted by Gerry Cross on Thursday, September 4, 2008 6:48 pm ADTThis year, 2008, I bought several geraniums that were listed as perennial, small shrub, they are lovely rounded bushes and I was wondering if this is a new variety that I can leave in the ground over the winter? I live in zone 9. Or do I have to remove & dry storage the plants?
re: Geraniums - Winter Storage
Posted by Philomena Ternovoy on Thursday, September 18, 2008 3:08 pm ADTI live in Alberta and for the last few winters we have had weeks here and there of minus 30 to minus 40. Would my geranium roots survive in an unheated garage?
re: Geraniums - Winter Storage
Posted by AJ on Thursday, October 9, 2008 12:36 am ADTI grew scented herbal geraniums over the summer. Can they be treated like regular geraniums and bare root wintered over for next year's growing season?
re: Geraniums - Winter Storage
Posted by Vanessa on Thursday, October 9, 2008 10:54 am ADTHi AJ - Yes, treat a scented geranium the same way.
re: Geraniums - Winter Storage
Posted by jane snowdon on Saturday, October 11, 2008 10:49 am ADTI pull out my geraniums..shake off as much soil as i can..put them in paper bags in a cool part of my basement or cellar..about 2 months later i take them them out soak the roots for 1-2 hours ( actually i forgot mine for a day) and shake them off stuff them back into the bags again. I have a 90% surival rate. I just trim off the pieces that don't look great...put the old plant into where i want it and take top cuttings and just start all new plants just sticking them right into pots flower beds etc......i do flower beds for several people and they always do great...i even keep the colors seperate in bags..i'm a hardcore gardener. lol
re: Geraniums - Winter Storage
Posted by Nancy Hendry on Sunday, October 19, 2008 2:31 pm ADTInteresting that people still talk about hanging bare root plants upside down in the basement the way our grandmothers used to do it. I was told by a nursery that the geraniums we get nowadays are hybrids and this method won't work - guessing the plants are as hardy as Gramma's used to be. I'm going to see what happens if my individual plants I repotted will survive in the greenhouse and I was checking this site to see what is recommended for how much to cut the plants back for overwintering. I should take some cuttings. I haven't been doing that each year but it makes so much sense to increase my stock.
re: Geraniums - Winter Storage
Posted by Carol Rayner on Tuesday, October 28, 2008 10:03 am ADTI have taken my geraniums out of the ground,but they have long roots. Can I cut the roots off so I can put them in smaller pots for the winter in my cold room?
re: Geraniums - Winter Storage
Posted by Anne Maslow on Saturday, November 1, 2008 10:27 pm ADTI have a beautiful large hanging geranium with a trailing ivy in the same pot .We didn't have frost yet , so it was outside until now . Today I trimmed the yellow leafs ,but didn't cut it back and brought it in to our plastic - enclosed porch . Can I leave it there until the freezing comes or should I take it inside already to a cool 60o room ? When should i take the cuttings ? It looks so strong and has several fresh blooms coming out.I hate to dismember it already .
re: Geraniums - Winter Storage
Posted by Lara on Tuesday, November 4, 2008 4:55 pm ASTIn reply to Gerry, above, perhaps what you have are cranesbill (aka hardy geranium)? If that's the case, you don't need to dig them up as they will be fine over the winter -- especially with your mild winters in zone 9. I'm only mildly jealous. I'm actually curious whether the other type of geranium would survive year round outdoors in zone 9...?
re: Geraniums - Winter Storage
Posted by Gerri Raymond on Tuesday, November 18, 2008 1:38 pm ASTI have a bright green full leafed geranium which blooms with coral flowers, a favorite I'd like to keep 'til Mich. Spring. How far can I cut it back to store in cool apt. storage room in a paper bag with bare root method? Can you diagram?
re: Geraniums - Winter Storage
Posted by randy on Saturday, December 20, 2008 2:57 pm ASTI have a potted Geranium that my daughter gave my wife for Mother's Day. I have been diligently taking care of it, but it has gotten scraggly with long branches but few leaves. After being gone for Thanksgiving weekend and forgetting to water it before we left, it is now practically bare. Should I just give up or can I cut it back and will it come back in the spring?
