WINTERING OVER OLD GERANIUM PLANTS 



WM. HUNTj. ONT. AGRI. COLLEGE, GUELPH. 



There are several methods by which 

 geranium plants can be carried through the 

 winter successfully ; but like other matters 

 connected with the care of plants, much 

 depends on local conditions, etc., where the 

 plants are to be kept, and the care they 

 receive. The best method for those who 

 are without the aid of a greenhouse and 

 wish to preserve their old geranium plants 

 is to dig them up from the border before 

 being frozen, and then prune them back se- 

 verely. The plants should then be planted in 

 sand, in boxes about three inches deep, with 

 a few one-quarter inch holes bored in the 

 bottom for drainage. Fine sharp building 

 sand, or sharp rinse sand from the side of 

 a road, will do very well. The plants 

 should be planted a little deeper in the sand 

 than they were when in the borders, and 

 can be planted rather thickly in the box. 

 If only one or two plants are to be kept 

 over, they can be put singly into small pots 

 just large enough to crowd the roots into, 

 usually a three or four inch pot is large 

 enough when the roots are trimmed back. 

 Give sufficient water- to moisten well all the 

 sand in the boxes or pots. The boxes or 

 pots should then be- stood in the window 

 and the sand kept only moderately moist. 



Avoid keeping the sand really wet all the 

 time. Leave the plants in the sand until 

 the young growth or shoots have made 

 three or four small leaves at the joints of 

 the old stems. Examine the roots then and 

 see if young roots have well started ; if so, 

 each plant should be potted singly into a 

 mixture of half sand and half potting soil, 

 in small 2^ inch or 3 inch pots 

 The plants will usually stand in the sand 



very well until January or February, if not 

 given too much water before they require 

 potting. The plants can remain in the 

 small pots for a month or two, when they 

 can be potted into good potting soil and 

 placed in pots two sizes larger. I have 

 known large collections of geraniums kept 

 over successfully in the above manner. 

 Plants treated in this way often make bet- 

 ter plants than when struck from cuttings. 



Another method is to put the boxes or 

 pots with the plants treated as before des- 

 cribed, in the cellar or basement at once, 

 instead of growing them on. The sand 

 must be kept much drier if this method is 

 adopted, as the plants must not be allowed 

 to start into growth until February or 

 March, when they can be brought up and 

 potted in sandy soil as before described, and 

 be kept in the window and grown on. 



I have known old geraniums to be cut 

 back in the autumn and merely heeled in 

 sand or sandy soil in the cellar. If the 

 cellar is kept at a temperature of 45 or 50 

 degrees or even warmer, the plants treated 

 by the last two methods described will us- 

 ually succeed fairly well. The one great 

 point to be gained is to keep the roots and 

 stems alive without inducing a too rapid 

 growth. When once new roots are well 

 formed and growth commences, no matter 

 whether the plants are in the cellar or the 

 window, they must be potted on and kept 

 growing. 



Geranium plants can often be preserved 

 by the above methods, even after the tops 

 of the growth have been badly frozen. The 

 plants must not be handled however, when 

 the frost is still in them. 



If pansies are wanted for early spring, handle, plant out in a light, rich well drained 



seed should be sown not later than early, soil in a shaded frame, facing the south. A 



September, in a shallow box. in fairly light sash should be placed over them in very 



soil; When plants are large enough to severe weather. — (Wm. Hunt, Guelph, Ont. 



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