A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2005 Is it worth it to winterize my geraniums for next spring?

My geraniums grew so large and beautiful this year, I hate to just let them die. I am in zone 5. I have heard you can overwinter them in the basement, but I wonder if they come back very well the following spring?

I have been saving my geraniums for 3 years now. I pull them from the soil, trim the tops back and put them in my dark basement in a paper bag. I check on them starting about the end of Ferbruary and when I see new green growth I pot them back up. They are growing beautifully by the time I plant my annuals in May. I think it's worth it!

So...paper bag...no water at all all winter?

Nope! No water! They magically let me know when it's time to pot them up again. Just remember to check on them and plant them as soon as you see the new shoots starting. I forgot about some once and they turned crispy! Oops

If they have grown too large, it is very, very easy to root cuttings. Just make a cut below one of the segmented sections and put it in a glass of water in a cool, dim room for a couple of weeks and it roots! (I usually do several cuttings to ensure success, just in case.)

I have some pink geraniums that my mother-in-law gave me before she died in 1998. They grew too huge and gangly so I rooted cuttings and still have them blooming today to remind me of her.