This is my very first bloom ever ^_^
It opened last week and I was thrilled.
My question is when do I bring this plant inside?
It has many more buds but the last two nights we have had 46 degrees at night. (80's days)
I do not want to harm the plant but am afraid if I bring it inside I wont see any more blooms.
You don't want to leave it out when there's frost or freezing temperatures. And, before you bring it inside, make sure to cut it way back (if you're going to keep it in a garage), leaving about 6 nodes on the branches, so that it will grow back like crazy next year. Are you going to keep it in a garage or in your house?
You didn't say whether your Brug is growing in the ground or in a pot, but you do have some choices. Unfortunately, the flowers and buds usually drop off or will have to be cut down unless you have a warm sunny window in the house or are lucky enough to have a sun room where the Brug can continue to grow. Flowers and buds require a lot of energy.
Indiana_lily's recommendation is a sound one. Brugs are damaged by frost. In your zone, Brugs will not survive left outside, even when planted in the ground. If you don't have room for it by a sunny window or in the basement, then cutting all the branches down to stubs is the way to go. Storing in the garage is iffy, if the temperatures drop down below 32ºF. When you prune, make the cuttings that contain the orginal "Y"s relatively large. On those cuttings, leave the several "Y"s and cut off everything else. Place the cuttings in buckets that contain several inches of water in a location that remains above freezing. The cuttings will root by next spring.
If the Brug is in the ground, you can dig it out and pot it up. Since roots are lost, you will have to prune heavily, but f you can keep 1 or 2 branches that have "Y"s attached, your Brug will start to bloom earlier next spring. Cut off all, but 1 or 2 layers of "Y"s beyond the initial "Y". This is the ideal way to overwinter the Brug as it gives you a head start next spring. The pruned potted Brug can then be placed in a cool place. If the temperatures hover between 32º and 45ºF where the Brug is stored, it will go dormant. Keep the soil barely damp during this period of time. Keeping the "Y" on the mother plant means the plant doesn't have to start from scratch every spring.
If the Brug is in a pot and you have room in the basement, it is possible to keep it blooming a bit longer, but you will have to have a good light source. Many of the leaves will drop off, but that's normal. You can prune some branches off so the mother plant can concentrate its energy on the few remaining branches. In the spring, you can prune off any branch tips that die back as well as any scraggly growth. You want to start spring on several sturdy "Y"s.
If I take cuttings in Oct and they have roots in 2 weeks, How long can the rooted cuttings stay in water? And do I need the cuttings in a sunny window?
*LOL* I've had a 4 ft cutting in water for over 2 months.((see pix)), gave it to my neighbor, but she won't come get it and plant it... I don't want two of the same one... I have a bunch of other cuttings in water almost ready for new homes...
Thank you both for the very helpful information.
My brug is in a pot, and I had not thought of the garage but may try that. I have had this for a couple years it was a surprise cutting from a DG member and I was totally new about this plant. I have treated it like a houseplant and put it out in the summer. No blooms so I put it in full sun near the potting shed and fertilized the heck out of it ...and it bloomed. I was about to toss it no room for such a large plant now it has performed I will have to find room and keep it.
Again thanks
Cinda
