Wondering if there is any way to save those beautiful but oh so expensive geraniums this fall and winter and still have them growing strong next year too? The good news is there is!
Geraniums are one of the most popular flowers of all for adding big color in the spring, summer and fall. With their long stems, bright green foliage and clustered petals they are certainly a showstopper wherever they grow.
But if there is one drawback to this beautiful flowering plant, it’s that in most cases, its life span never lasts beyond a single growing season. In fact, in most growing zones, geraniums are treated as an annual flower – even though they truly are a perennial. And can it ever get expensive having to repurchase them each and every year!
Much like with marigolds, begonias and other annual flowers, geraniums quickly die off with the first hard frost or freeze of the season. But with just a little bit of late season care before temperatures plummet, winter’s arrival doesn’t have to spell the end of the line for geraniums.
How To Save Geraniums – The Secret To Keeping Geraniums Alive Over Winter!
There are actually two distinct types of geraniums, hardy and non-hardy. Both, however, are true perennials. The only difference is that hardy perennial geraniums can handle life outdoors year round without any additional help in growing zones three through eight. And non-hardy, as the name implies, cannot.
Non-hardy geraniums are the variety commonly used for planting in containers, baskets and flowerbeds. These are the geraniums that have the big stems and flower sets that most gardeners think of when they think of geraniums. And yes, also the ones that seem to cost more and more every spring to buy!
Unfortunately, these are also the geraniums that all too often are simply allowed to die at the end of the growing season. But, as you will see below, with just a bit of extra effort, non-hardy geraniums are quite easy to keep alive over the winter to grow again next year.
Step 1 – Saving Your Geraniums Before It’s Too Late
Overwintering and saving non-hardy geraniums is very similar to the process of saving ferns. And just like when saving ferns, success begins by taking action before your geraniums can be ruined by a hard frost or freeze. See our article: How To Divide, Save & Overwinter Ferns Indoors
First, it’s important to realize that non-hardy geraniums are extremely fragile in cold weather. Their stems, foliage and blooms all contain high amounts of moisture. And if that water freezes, it will quickly spell the end of the line for them.
That means in order to save your geraniums, you will need to move them indoors before the threat of frost. The earlier the better to avoid any issues with the plant’s roots and stems suffering damage.
Three Easy Ways To Save Geraniums
There are actually a couple of different methods for saving geraniums. Selecting the best method for you all depends on your available space – and whether or not your plants grew directly in flower beds, or in pots or hanging baskets. Let’s first take a look at saving potted geraniums.
Saving Potted Geraniums
Saving geraniums already growing in pots or baskets is perhaps the easiest of all. If you have plenty of space in a well-lit room, you can actually save them as a houseplant. In fact, in the right conditions, they will even continue to bloom!
Geraniums will grow well indoors as long as they have plenty of light and adequate warmth. Begin by trimming off any dead stems and flower stems. Place the plant in a southern facing window away from drafts or heat vents. Water as the soil dries out, being careful not to overwater.
If you do not want to grow your geraniums as a houseplant, you can also allow them to go dormant and store them out of sight in their container. To do this, begin by cutting the plant back to about 1/2 of its original size.
Locating Your Plants For Success – How To Save Geraniums
Next, you will need to find a suitable location for allowing your plant to go dormant but still stay safe. The best location of all is a cool, damp basement. Unheated but insulated garages can work too as long as the temperatures do not get near or below freezing.
Cover your plants with a brown paper bag. Do not use plastic or a sheet. The brown paper bag will allow the plant to still breathe but cut light. Make sure the soil is fairly dry when covering. If it is too wet, it can cause the plant to mold and die.
Check your geraniums every two to three weeks to make sure the leaves are not falling off or drying out too much. If they are too dry, slightly water the surface to give the plants just a bit of moisture. As spring rolls around, you can move plants back outdoors or in a protected location to begin to regrow once again.
How To Save Bare Root Cuttings – How To Save Geraniums
There is a third option to save your geraniums that requires even less space. Even better, it allows you to save geraniums planted in pots or directly in the ground.
In early fall, simply dig up your geraniums or remove them from the pot. Next, brush off the soil to expose the bare roots. Cut the top of the plant down in size by 1/2 to 2/3rds, leaving all of the roots intact.
Next, place the plants into a large brown paper bag (a cardboard box will work well too) and store in a cool, dark location. Again, the basement is usually the best place of all. When placing them in the bag or box, place the plants in upside down to keep the roots up.
Just before spring, you can pot up your bare root plants and place them in a sunny room or window sill. When potting, use a good quality potting soil to ensure the roots set and grow well. This is where applying a rooting hormone or booster to the roots can really help speed growth and success. Rooting Hormone Powder)
Water the plants so that they are slightly moist. You should begin to see new growth appear within a few weeks. As the weather turns warmer outside, you can replant directly in the ground or allow the plants to grow in the containers!
Here is to saving your geraniums this fall and keeping them alive over winter – and to saving a little more in your bank account next spring! Happy Gardening – Jim & Mary.
Old World Garden
Jim and Mary Competti have been writing gardening, DIY and recipe articles and books for over 15 years from their 46 acre Ohio farm. The two are frequent speakers on all things gardening and love to travel in their spare time.
As always, feel free to email us at thefarm@owgarden.com with comments, questions, or to simply say hello! You can sign up for our free email list in the subscribe now box in the middle of this article. Follow us on Facebook here : OWG Facebook. This article may contain affiliate links.