What to do with potted plants during the winter?

General Gardening
#1

Hello everyone,

I have some potted up blueberry bushes that are hardy to zone 5 (I live in zone 5) but I’ve read that because they are potted they are less resistant to cold. How do I assure that they stay warm enough? I was considering waiting until they go completely dormant and then moving them up against a wall of my house. Will that work, or do they still need sunlight?

Thanks!

#2

that might work but ive read potted plant roots are 2 growing zones less hardy than the plant itself. best bet is to put the pots in the ground for the winter. i usually can get away with leaving potted plants out of the ground but i bury them with alot of snow to protect them.

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#3

For blueberries…if you bury the pot you’ll be fine. I tried overwintering blueberries in the garage and it killed them (i think they dried out too much). All my blueberries are in pots (soil here sucks for blueberries) of peat moss and they are all buried in the ground. They’ve done fine (Probably year 4 or 5 on a couple of them).

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#4

Thanks for the replies! Unfortunately, the pots are actually grow bags so I don’t think burying is an option. Any other ways to protect them?

#5

In that case you could try putting leaves around them and if/when you get snow.bury them in snow. Watch out for rabbits…they like to thin them.

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#6

Bunch them all together, get a bale of Peat moss fill in any gaps, give a few inches on top and around. Easy to dig them out and clean up in the spring too!
Much easier than leaves, I’ve done both successfully. Live and learn.
As far as the sunlight goes I’ve bought trees from a small nursery that over winters in a sea can (shipping container). Don’t know what they do for watering, but outside Mother Nature will take care of it.
I’ll reiterate what @warmwxrules warned: protect from hungry rabbits, deer too if you have them!
Good Luck!

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#7

I’ve lost potted blueberries to drought and to root rot from too much retained moisture…so far none to the cold. (I’m in zone 6 and have around 20 cultivars going into winter in containers.) (Been doing the container thing for over 10 years for blueberries. Brightwell did finally die, but I don’t believe from cold temps…but I’d be a little more concerned about the rabbiteyes here in Kentucky in unprotected pots.)

#8

If possible, bury their pots in the ground. Or, put them in an unheated, attached garage with whatever light might come through windows. I suspect that they would not need much light under those conditions but am not sure.

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#9

For years we kept our blueberries in pots thinking that they’re better off sheltered in an unheated garage because we’re in zone 5. Huge mistake! The warmth really messed them up, they had a lot of trouble leafing out, tons of flowers but very few leaves. It’s only after we put them in the ground and they spent a Canadian winter in the ground did they return to normal.

If you really must leave the berries in pots, place the pots next to your driveway. When you shovel your driveway, you will bury them in the snowbank.

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