How to winter geraniums

Geraniums are the most popular balcony plants. If we do not want to get rid of the geraniums that enjoyed our flowers from spring to autumn, we need to properly protect them for the winter. The following article explains step by step how to properly winter geraniums. If done correctly, the plants will not only bloom again next year, but we will also be able to grow new seedlings from them.

To overwinter geraniums, choose he althy plants that bloom abundantly
and grow profusely.We reject sick and wilted specimens.

Which geraniums for wintering?

If we want overwinter geraniums , pre-select plants for wintering. Plants attacked by pests, pelargonium diseases or weakened are not suitable for wintering. It is best to overwinter strong and he althy plants, because then we have the greatest probability that the geranium will bloom again next year, and the seedlings grown from it will be equally he althy and strong.

We do not store pelargoniums for more than two years. Older plants should be discarded as they lose their decorative value. Plants bloom best in the first year after rooting.

When should geraniums be used for wintering?Initial temperature drops are not dangerous for pelargoniums. The first, usually small, frosts are not dangerous for geraniums, so when they do occur, do not panic and move all the containers into the room.It is only in the morning temperatures below -3 ° C that they begin to damage the flowers and the sensitive tops of growth, making these parts of the pelargonium appear withered. During the day, the symptoms of freezing disappear as the temperature rises. And this is the perfect time to transfer geraniums to the rooms where they will spend the winter. This moment usually falls on the turn of October and November.How to prepare geraniums for wintering?Digging out growing geraniums in flower beds

If geraniums grew in a bed, they should be dug up together with a fairly large root ball. It's best not to shake the soil off the roots. Transplant the geraniums excavated in this way into pots with a diameter of approx. 20-25 cm. Of course, by gently adjusting the root ball to the pot (we shorten the longest roots). Fill the pots at the bottom with drainage.

Instead of pots, there may be one large box with drainage at the bottom. Of course, if we have enough space to keep it where we wantwinter geraniums In such a box, we plant geraniums at intervals of about 25 cm. After placing the geraniums in a pot or box, cover them with soil. The substrate with which we cover the geraniums can be soil from the garden, flower beds, and even sand.
Geraniums growing in containers and pots
Geraniums that have been growing all summer in a container on a balcony or terrace, simply move them to room with the pot.
Pruning geraniums
Remember to trim each plant after transferring the geraniums for wintering. To do this, cut the shoots above the knot with a sharp knife so that they are approx. 15-20 cm long. Any dried or yellowed leaves remaining on the plant after pruning should also be removed. If only 2-3 leaves are left on the pelargonium, don't panic, this is what the wintering pelargonium should look like.

Ivy-leaved geraniums winter in the same way as bedding geraniums.

Under what conditions do geraniums winter?

Temperature
Prepared for wintering geraniums we put in a bright and cool place. For example, there may be an unheated winter garden or a greenhouse, any place will be fine as long as the temperature does not drop below 0 ° C there. If the temperature briefly drops to -2 or -3 ° C, nothing will happen. The best storage temperature for geraniums in winter is 5 to 10 ° C.
Lighting
Room for geraniums wintering must also be lit as much as possible. Therefore, do not keep geraniums in a dark garage or basement without windows, even if the temperature is right there.
Is a staircase suitable for wintering pelargonium?
If someone lives in He can keep his pelargonium on a bright and unheated staircase (temperature must not be higher than 10 ° C).
Watering
Watering geraniums sporadically during winter.You can even let the soil dry out. If some of the leaves dry out, there will be no harm. The most important thing is that the stalks do not dry out as they are the most important part of the geranium. Shoots must be juicy and firm. Correctly wintered pelargonium is watered only 3-4 times throughout the winter.
Stimulated pelargonium to grow
When the day becomes significantly longer, i.e. around mid-January, the temperature should be raised in a room at 3-4 ° C and start watering the geraniums more. The water should be mixed with multi-component fertilizer in the amount of approx. 2 ml per 1 liter of water (according to the instructions on the fertilizer packaging). All these treatments will stimulate pelargonium growth. New shoots will start to grow from the buds sleeping on the shoots.
After a few weeks, new shoots will be large enough that at the beginning of March it will be possible to cut 3-4 node geraniums from them. However, if we do not intend to reproduce cuttings, new suckers should be removed so that they spread even more strongly.Thanks to this, there will be plenty of flowers on them in the summer.

Winter geraniums should be used to prepare seedlings
and propagate plants.

Do all geraniums winter in the same way?

The method of pelargonium wintering described in the article applies primarily to bed and ivy-leaved geraniums. We can treat large-flowered geraniums a bit differently.
Wintering of large-flowered geraniums
Well, large-flowered geraniums do not have to undergo a distinct dormancy period like bed and ivy-leaved geraniums and can be kept at a higher temperature. In order for them to bloom again in spring, they should be kept in a well-lit room with a temperature of 12-14 ° C, but no more! Under such conditions, they will grow all the time. They need approx.2 months. When we notice the first flower buds, we have to raise the temperature to 18 ° C. Thanks to such winter retention conditions, large-flowered geraniums will bloom as early as April.
If for some reason we cannot provide large-flowered geraniums with the above conditions, these winter geraniums should be used same as previous bed or ivy geraniums. Then they will fall into a state of rest. It will not hurt them, but then they will bloom a bit later.
Another method of wintering bed geraniums
An unusual and rarely used method for wintering pelargonium rebate is keeping their heads down. This method is supposed to guarantee a very abundant flowering.
Selected specimens should be dug up or taken out of the pots and the roots removed. We tie a few plants in bunches and roll their roots into gray wrapping paper. The prepared geraniums are hung upside down (i.e. the part above the ground down) in a cool and dry cellar.Old recipes say that it is good to sprinkle the roots with sulfur powder to prevent the roots from rotting. Then we plant them in fresh, moist soil. We water only when the first leaves appear on the stems.