Today’s video is a quick tropical style garden overwintering & winter care tip for exotic plants like cannas, Hedchyium gingers and Musa banana plants plus other plants in pots. In the video I discuss how keeping insurance or backup plants is a great way to reliably keep a plant for the next year but may also help you be a bit more experimental and find a route to a lower maintenance and easier overwintering process going forwards. Growing and overwintering exotic plants is definitely a game of trial and error, success and lessons, but rather than blindly following what other people do (including me!) I’d definitely encourage you to experiment with your tropical garden plants and see what YOU can get away with!
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Thanks,
George
14 Comments
Sensible philosophy. Agree with everything you say in this one. There has to be a balance between protecting plants and being time efficient.
Great explanation George, it's always good to encourage experimentation to find the best plants for your own garden. Your patch is still looking fantastic mate.
Dont have Gunnera so I made leaf tent for my tetrapanax 😎🤔🤔
So glad I live in Cornwall but the winds/ rain can be a trial.
I have gone all in with leaving in the ground. although I did manage to split one giner into 3, and potted them, which will stay in the shed… so this is my first winter growing these plants in west suusex ..going to be fun 🙂
As always you're advice is sound. Exotic-style gardening is a game, a gamble in our climate. The challenge is what makes it rewarding, if it was easy it wouldn't be as fun. I've learnt far more from failure than success. Without a measured gamble there's no learning. Insurance plants are the way to go. Failing that, with plants you're not that bothered about either way (colocasia redemption for me), I go all in and leave my sole plant outdoors. What will be will be….season after season the game is played. The whistle hasn't blown yet this winter. When the proper weather comes again we'll see how this match plays out. Good luck to you this winter with your plant gambles🤞
THX GEORGE YOUR A PAL
I never get bored watching you!
I like this approach. Very much along the lines of what I was thinking with my jungle garden. You’ve given me some ideas about some insurance plants I can sort out too.
Left some colacasia esculenta in a large pot last winter. We had minus 5 for almost a week in the winter and this year they grew ft long leafs. They had a layer of mulch over the top of the pot and it was under a tree. Going to do the same this year and see how they go.
Thanks George. My hardy Gingers from QVC did nothing the first year. Then sprouted and last winter they disappeared. I took it they were hardy. But they faced. Minus. 18 in September this year I noticed new growth. I’m hoping for a mild winter. , with cover with compost and cross everything. X. Thanks for all your work and high video standards. .
That's some very valuable advice George, George I have a Trachycarpus Fortunei that I want to plant near another one, is there any worry about their trunks overlapping or growing too near and can Trachycarpus plants tolerate acidic soil I have one growing in it but am unsure to.kove it since it was planted a few weeks ago. Thank you for your advice George.
Hi George. Do you grow Red Sweet potato plant? I have grown some from cuttings this year but have never seen you mention or recommend this plant. It looks lush in full leaf, would you know if it is winter hardy or totally not?
Thanks George, last year I had to scramble round the garden rushing to get things protected, but this year I'm on it !! no rushing at last minute for me. The greenhouse is almost full, just enough room for some seedlings and wither sown seeds. I only lost a couple of bulb plants last year so not too bad. Good luck on getting the plants through the winter. Fingers crossed that it's not a really bad winter 🤞