7 Plants I Bring Indoors for Winter (and 5 Not Worth the Trouble)
Here’s what plants to overwinter—and what to compost!
Before the first frost or freeze of the growing season arrives, I’m on a mission: Save my plants! Indoors, I take stock of my houseplant collection and toss any that aren’t looking their best to make way for plants that will come indoors for the winter. Since my space is limited and I don’t have a greenhouse, I have to be choosy and a little heartless (Sorry, leggy pothos. You’ve got to go!).
I also walk around outside and decide what plants are going to come indoors. I try to take this informal inventory sooner rather than later, not when the frost/freeze alert pops up on my phone. I’ve learned it’s no fun scrambling around trying to figure out which plants to save or sacrifice when you’re under pressure, daylight is fading, and the temperatures are dropping.
I also do a reality check: What plants are inexpensive enough to buy again next year? While I do want to save money when possible, one of the joys of spring is heading to the local nursery to see all the latest and greatest new plants!
Finally, I save only healthy plants— anything that’s struggling now is going to struggle all winter long. Ditto for any plants that I battled bugs on all summer long. It’s simply not worth the ongoing struggle, nor do I want to risk bringing these pests indoors to infect my houseplants.
With experience, you’ll find you have a knack for saving some types of plants, while others are too fussy for your taste—and that’s okay! You’ll also learn that not every plant you attempt to save will make it. But don’t be afraid to experiment because half the fun of gardening is figuring out what works for you. You'll never know unless you try.
More gardening stories you’ll love:
- The Difference Between Frost and Freeze, Explained
- Why and How to Divide Perennials This Fall (and Get Free Plants!)
- When (and How) to Move Your Plants Inside Before It’s Too Cold)
Read on to see which plants I typically overwinter—and which ones I find too needy:
Do Overwinter: Annual Geranium
There are two basic ways to save annual geraniums (Pelargonium): Bring the whole pot inside, cutting back by one-third, and placing in a bright sunny window or under a grow light. Water the plants thoroughly when the soil becomes mostly dry.
Or dig up plants and remove all soil from them, store them in a brown paper bag, and soak the roots a few times during the winter so they don't become overly dry. In the spring, pot up and take outdoors when the threat of frost has passed.
Read more: Gorgeous Geranium Varieties That Add a Ton of Garden Charm
Do Overwinter: Citrus Tree
I don’t bring many houseplants outdoors in summer except for my citrus trees, which adore baking on my brick patio all summer long. However, these absolutely must be sprayed off before bringing in and inspected and isolated for most of the winter to ensure you don’t bring any hitchhiking pests indoors.
These trees do okay-ish in a sunny east, west or south-facing window, but with the dearth of daylight hours in winter, they do far better under an LED grow light for 12 to 14 hours per day.
Do Overwinter: Rosemary
Rosemary can be fussy inside our super-dry homes in winter, but I’ve had success by bringing the entire potted plant indoors, keeping it in a sunny east or west-facing window, and watering when the surface feels dry.
One of my rosemary plants became so huge from many years of being shuttled in and out that I could no longer fit the pot through the door! If you have no room indoors, it will also do fine in unheated garage or covered porch. It’s a surprisingly sturdy plant.
Read more: How to Grow an Indoor Herb Garden
Do Overwinter: Fig
Many figs are not hardy in USDA zones 5 or colder. After the first frost or two, when all the foliage has dropped, bring your potted fig indoors or shelter it in an unheated garage or basement. Water occasionally, about once a month. I also elevate it off the cold floor with a plant stand.
Your fig tree may look rough and try to sprout early before you can take it back outdoors, but have faith. Most figs are incredibly tough plants; trim them back hard in the spring and place outdoors when temperatures no longer drop into the 40s at night.
Do Overwinter: Bird of Paradise
This handsome tropical plant makes a beautiful floor plant indoors, and I’ve learned it’s surprisingly hardy in low light conditions. Bring in the entire pot and place in a sunny window.
I have mine in an east-facing window that doesn’t get a ton of sun during the winter, yet this plant has thrived and gotten so large that it’s touching my 9-foot ceiling. Water every 10 days or so when the top few inches of soil feel dry.
Read more: How to Care for Bird of Paradise Plant
Do Overwinter: Canna Lily
I find cannas the easiest of all of the tender tropicals to overwinter. In zones 7 and colder, you must dig up the rhizomes because they won't survive a freeze.
After the first frost or two, cut back the foliage to within about 6 inches of the ground. Then lift the rhizomes with a garden fork or spade, and store in a paper bag in an unheated space, such as a basement or garage, where it won’t freeze. In the spring when all threat of frost has passed, divide and replant.
Do Overwinter: Dahlia
Dahlias tubers also are easy to save; after the first frost or two, cut back the foliage to within 6 inches of the soil, then store in an unheated area that won’t freeze.
Layer them in vermiculite, peat moss, or cedar shavings in a plastic container without a lid, or in a paper bag. Check the tubers once a month, and spritz if too dry. Replant next spring when all danger of frost has passed.
Read more: How to Save and Divide Dahlia Tubers for Next Year
Don't Overwinter: Boston Fern
Now, some people are devoted to their Boston ferns and dutifully transition them to the indoors every fall. But, the lower light levels indoors cause them to drop fronds—and then drop some more. And then drop some more. Messy!
Don't Overwinter: Mandevilla
I’ve tried both leaving it potted and bringing it in, or cutting it back first and then bringing it in. Neither was a success. Due to the lower light levels, these plants did nothing but drop foliage and ooze white sap.
Don’t Overwinter: Tropical Hibiscus
These tender tropicals (not the hardy perennial types, which can survive in USDA Hardiness zones 5 and warmer) caused me nothing but frustration with dropped foliage and an ongoing battle with aphids.
Don’t Overwinter: Gardenia
This finicky beauty prefers high humidity levels, so it typically drops both leaves and buds instantly once indoors.
Don’t Overwinter: Lavender
Types of lavender that aren’t cold-hardy in my area, such as Spanish lavender, just don’t like the dry, heated indoor air.
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