Well I don’t know about all you guys but here in the Niagara area we’ve had a couple of chilly nights and morning already, so my mind has turned to thoughts of over wintering my impatiens and geranium plants . For several years now I’ve managed to successfully over winter Geranium plants both by hanging them to dry and re potting them as house plants , but the impatiens have never made it through , which is odd to my mind as growing up in England I never thought of impatiens as garden plants Mum had them in pots all around the house always in constant flower, she would break off a tip stick it in the soil next to the mother plant and in a very short time she would have a new plant she couldn’t give them away fast enough, but for me in the house they just drop their leaves and die. I am beginning to think  its too much of a shock to them to suddenly find themselves in doors , mums never were outside , perhaps this year I will just try rooting some cuttings and see how they do, inside rather than bringing in whole plants…..well we shall see ?

There are several methods of over wintering Geranium Plants

One way is to take cuttings and root them in the fall, just prior to the first frost. Geraniums are a very easy plant to start from cuttings in September from healthy Geranium  plants which have been kept rather dry for a couple weeks. Use a clean, sharp knife and make a cutting 3 to 4 inches in length from the growing tips. Geranium stem cuttings, often called “slips,” should be four to six inches long. Take the slips from the tips of the healthiest stems. Remove the leaves on the bottom two inches of the cuttings. Stick the cuttings in coarse sand, perlite, vermiculite or a well-drained potting soil. Cuttings will root faster if you dip the ends in rooting hormone powder.

Embed the Geranium plants cuttings two inches deep in the medium and water thoroughly.
Place in a north or east window or underneath artificial lights until rooted. This generally takes three to four weeks. After the cuttings have rooted, plant them in individual pots and put them in a well-lighted spot. Keep the soil evenly moist, and begin fertilizing monthly once new growth appears.

Potted Geraniums

Rather than take cuttings, some people prefer to pot their best geranium plants and bring them inside to over winter. If this is your choice, cut the plant back to about one-third its original height. Carefully dig up the plant, and pot it into a five or six-inch flower pot. After you pot it, water thoroughly. Location and care is then the same as for rooted cuttings. A sunny, cool location is best.

One of the most important things  is to keep all of your geranium plants away from heat sources inside the home.Try to re-create the same conditions indoors that the geranium plants were experiencing  outdoors. Try to provide as much light and humidity as possible. The temperature range if possible should be from 60-70 degrees, which is cooler than most homes typically are  in the winter months , so if you have a spare room that you are happy to keep at a lower temperature ,  that has  adequate light, you have it made.
Even in these conditions, your geraniums may begin to get a little leggy and less attractive by the end of winter. If this is the case, simply re take new cuttings from the mother plant

Dormant Hanging of Geranium Plants

Geraniums are unusual and unlike many other annual flowers, they have the ability to survive for most of the winter without soil. If properly stored, they can resist extended dry periods due to their thick, succulent-like stems.

This is an old but very successful methods of carrying geranium plants  over the winter.  Dig up the entire plant prior to frost. Shake the soil from the roots Place the geranium plants inside open paper bags or hang them upside-down from the rafters in a cool, dark location for the winter. Ideally the temperature should be between 45-50°F.. Years ago fruit cellars were quite common, and they made excellent places to hold the plants with this method. It will not work in many basements today because temperatures are too high and humidity too low.

However, some people report success with hanging geraniums in modern basements. Temperature and humidity seems to differ in every basement. Since there is no way of knowing whether this will work in your basement, try it with several plants.

If you decide to try this method, Two or three times during the winter, take the geranium plants out the bags or down from the rafters and soak the roots in water for 1 or 2 hours. At this time, inspect the stems. While many of the leaves will die and fall off, the stems should remain firm and solid. Discard any geranium plants with shriveled stems, since those plants will most likely die, then hang them back up. Do this several times during the winter to prevent them from completely drying. Expect the leaves to turn brown, dry up, and fall off. If all goes well, though, stems should remain green.

Pot up healthy dormant geranium plants in containers in late March or early April. Water plants thoroughly and cut back the dead stem tips. Place potted geranium plants in a sunny window to initiate new growth. It often takes several weeks for plants to initiate growth after dormant storage. No matter how geraniums have been over wintered, they should be healthy, free-flowering plants for spring. After being indoors all winter, your geranium p[lants may be as anxious as you are for spring planting. Plant them after the danger of frost has passed

So Gardeners have several choices, when it comes to overwintering of geraniums but regardless of what method is chosen It is always important to make sure that the plants are vigorous, healthy, and insect- and disease-free. White flies, aphids, and mealy bugs, which hide on the plants, will spread indoors, where predators can’t keep them in check.

Some gardeners re pot the geranium plants in fresh houseplant soil. That might be a little unnecessary; though it practically guarantees no soil borne insects are brought indoors.

For geranium plants in larger pots or in the ground, carefully dig up the geranium and plant it in a 6- or 8-inch pot. Use potting soil instead of garden soil to avoid a soggy, heavy soil indoors. Prune back each geranium plant by half.

Geranium plants require at least 10 to 12 hours of light and temperatures of 65 to 70 degrees during the day and 55 to 60 degrees at night. Excessively warm temperatures tend to encourage legginess

Other Annuals That People Report To of Over Wintered Successfully

Fuchsias

Heliotrope

Dusty miller

Coleus

Sweet potato vine

Impatiens