Overwintering with a mini-greenhouse?

[LittleDingus]

Really appreciate the advice and empathy in this situation! I think your advice is what I’ve been hearing on other forums. Only thing new I might do is set up some form of a windbreak. Maybe enough layers of the winter cloth and a garbage bag can achieve that though. Or not. We’ll see..

And good luck!! I have a 30 year old jade plant that would be a horrible loss to me. Luckily those things are indestructible and can regenerate from a single cell

 

[Bonsai Noodles]

No solid plastic around the trunk. It's counter intuitive but you want to insulate against (slow down) the movement of moisture, not prevent it entirely.

Duly noted. I have this cage thing that’s currently surrounding it. I don’t plan to have the fabric touch the tree really—just outside where the bag and fabric will be.

And technically, it’s not burlap. I bought this winter cloth thing that should help.

Thanks all for the advice!

And good luck!! I have a 30 year old jade plant that would be a horrible loss to me. Luckily those things are indestructible and can regenerate from a single cell

Haha, reminds me of an issue of X-Men where Wolverine regenerates like that...

 

[SC1989]

I kept my first 3 trees alive last winter. 2 jm ‘s and a trident. Unheated garage though... put the pots in a tote bin and insulated around them with a bunch of sphagmum moss.it consistently got close to zero degrees in the garage. I have a small greenhouse as well. I think it could work. Just keep it out of the sun. Avoid repeated freeze/thaw. I ‘ve read some pros saying no less than 25 degrees WITH protection for jm s.... . Wind break and protect the pots while letting them breathe. See how many survive this year

 

[Forsoothe!]

Preventing cycling from cold to warm to cold to warm is every bit as important as moderating the depth of cold, and are often two different things. An enclosure needs to not warm up much on a sunny, windless day and also needs to prevent deep cold (always a relative term). Baffling the wind is important, too. Carrying a snow load is another factor. Put them all together and anything cheap and light is doomed. Keep in mind that in the worst weather you can look out the window and watch your baby to get crushed and/or blown around the neighborhood while you watch, secure in the knowledge that you can do nothing at that moment except regret that you can see it happen before your very eyes.

It gets worse. Whatever it is needs to either occupy dead space in summer or be stored somewhere and reassembled each autumn. The stuff inside has to be watered about every 3 weeks or so, and too dry is just as bad as too much or little of anything. Attached is a pdf describing one way to build a unit that will break down to mostly light, flat panels. Building materials available at any big box. Worked in Michigan for 12 years.

 

[LittleDingus]

@Bonsai Noodles any updates? What did you wind up doing? Did it work out for you??

 

[Lazylightningny]

This was my first year using a tent-style greenhouse. The first one blew away, so I built an internal frame from 2x4s and now it's strong enough to withstand the strongest winds we've had so far. It has 6 windows and the doors roll open. That's the only method of temperature regulation. I don't have a way to run electricity out to it. I do have to water much more frequently in the winter. The main advantage is it keeps the wind and frost off the plants. I also place newly repotted plants there for a few weeks, and keep weak trees in it for a couple of weeks. So far it seems to working out.

 

[WNC Bonsai]

I tried to keep a Marseille fig tree alive for several years. I got fruit 2 years out of 7 after very mild winters. I even tried keeping it it in a frame wrapped with garden cloth insulated with dry leaves. Some years all the above ground parts survived but the fruit and leaves were killed off by late spring freezes. In a couple of years everything above ground died back. I gave up and planted it in a big pot on wheels so I could roll it into the garage each winter. Never did produce much that way. I finally gave up and gave it to a friend with a bigger garage. Good luck with your apricot.

 

[Bonsai Noodles]

@Bonsai Noodles any updates? What did you wind up doing? Did it work out for you??

Sure! Thanks for the reminder. Fortunately, my garden tree did survive this winter! It got to as low as -20F for a few days in Minnesota this year, so I was really concerned. My tree has only ever been tested as low as Zone 6, I believe, and I hear they tend to be grown in Zone 9 (given, this was a seed-grown tree, so some genetic variance is expected — maybe I got some good cold-resistance genes in this boy).

What I did was basically BURY the tree in snow. And when I say bury, I mean BURY. It was covered all the way to the top of this red cage you see. I also used a "winter fabric" I found on Amazon which was breathable yet protective of ultra-cold. The tree did somewhat slow its growth when we had some late spring frosts. For days it'd go back to 20 F, I would cover it with the winter fabric. However, it seemed to manage.

Overall, was a success this year! I guess life really does find a way.

 

[LittleDingus]

Awesome! It looks great!

I'm not sure I would count on that method every year though

 

[Bonsai Noodles]

Awesome! It looks great!

I'm not sure I would count on that method every year though

Yeah, for sure. I am starting to think of a longer term method… It’ll definitely not be possible to bury it when the tree gets taller for me. Maybe I can come up with a natural windbreak somehow, and that should help (I should also note the tree was planted on the south side of the house, but there are many larger trees south of it, so it’s protected somewhat from sunscald).

 

[LittleDingus]

Have you considered putting it in a large patio container? Maybe you don't have room in the garage/basement for it??

Anyway...I'm happy it lived!!

So far, I think I only lost a baby crepe myrtle this winter...and even it might just be late to bud. The other baby in the same pot has budded but the second one hasn't yet.

It's so nice to be able to breath again

 

[Bonsai Noodles]

Have you considered putting it in a large patio container? Maybe you don't have room in the garage/basement for it??

Anyway...I'm happy it lived!!

So far, I think I only lost a baby crepe myrtle this winter...and even it might just be late to bud. The other baby in the same pot has budded but the second one hasn't yet.

It's so nice to be able to breath again

Congrats! And hope your crepe myrtle survived too.

I was thinking of putting it in a large patio container, but my biggest concern is that I won't be able to take care of it while I'm gone (hence the two locations in my profile). It's really a big tossup on whether I can trust my old folks to take care of it. What's more dangerous: caretakers who may not be as reliable watering/feeding/etc. or the winter? The bonsai in pots barely made it this past winter in the unheated garage, and it was only because I sort of saved them when I could stay at home during the pandemic (did lose half of my koto hime maple though, but those aren't really cold hardy at all). Maybe I can come up with a better system. I dunno.

 

[LittleDingus]

Congrats! And hope your crepe myrtle survived too.

I was thinking of putting it in a large patio container, but my biggest concern is that I won't be able to take care of it while I'm gone (hence the two locations in my profile). It's really a big tossup on whether I can trust my old folks to take care of it. What's more dangerous: caretakers who may not be as reliable watering/feeding/etc. or the winter? The bonsai in pots barely made it this past winter in the unheated garage, and it was only because I sort of saved them when I could stay at home during the pandemic (did lose half of my koto hime maple though, but those aren't really cold hardy at all). Maybe I can come up with a better system. I dunno.

I hear ya. I don't leave town much...but when I do, it's probably the most dangerous thing I do to my plants! Which is saying a lot!