Re: Overwintering annuals

> I'd rather not see a separate "annuals" list myself.  There are so
> few true annuals grown and so much confusion about which they are
> that half the conversations would be about tender perennials.  Take
> the ubiquitous Impatiens.  I have one plant that has lived for at
> least 6 years.  Occupies the same pot as my night blooming Cerus -
> self seeded in there; blooms for me all winter and all summer.  Sold
> as and considered and "annual".  It ain't:-)

The thing is, most of these plants are marketed and referred to in
literature as annuals.  Discussing them on a perennials list would
just confuse people, especially when it comes to issues like over-
wintering for people in colder climates.

There's also the issue of granularity.  If you discuss too many topics
on a list you end up overwhelming it.  Splitting off major topics to
other lists makes more sense because people interested in a subset of
the discussions have more control, or finer granularity, in what they
can read.  However, splitting lists into even finer subparts (like a
list dedicated to Callibrachoa, for example) would splinter discussions
too far apart -- the topics would be so specialized that many people
wouldn't be interested and the lists would die from lack of use.

I'd really rather create a new annuals (or annuals and tender perennials)
list.

> Vinca major in all its forms is hardy for me.
> 
> I would plant it out in a protected spot.  It's hard to mulch as
> organic material on the leaves rots it, but you could put some
> evergreen boughs on it since it won't be firmly established.

I sometimes get it to come back if it's planted against the foundation,
but they usually seem to lose their variegation.

> Ipomoea batata overwinters for me in my cool greenhouse most years,
> where temps can be 40F or a tad lower.  It would prefer 50F.

Great!  I can store these in my mud room.  :) 

Thanks for the tips on the other plants!  I brought in most things (my
garage looks like a greenhouse now) and covered the rest with tarps and
blankets.  Hopefully that will be enough to keep them from freezing.

Chris

http://www.hort.net/gallery/      3057 online plant photos and growing!
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