Bulbs inside for winter?

Hi there,
I am a newbie and very excited about my new found hobby. I have begonias and dahlias amongst other plants that need to come indoors for the winter. What do I need to do to bring these plants in for the winter? I live in an apartment in the winter, but have a cottage where the plants are. Could I bring them into the cottage, which will be warm only on weekends? How cool is too cold to store the pants? Should I use dried or wet sand or dried or wet peat moss or paper bags in a dark place? What about storing them in the fridge? Please any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Oh ya I'm in zone 5a.

This message was edited Oct 28, 2007 4:22 PM

You don't want them to freeze
You don't want them to dry out.

Dig them after a frost kills the foilage.
Hose off the soil and let them dry in a garage for 3-4 days.
Put them in a cardboard box or paper bags and store in a cool, dark area. (do not use plastic) 40-50 degrees F is ideal.
Check them monthly for soft or rotten spots, if you see any discard that bulb.
If they appear to be drying out mist them with some water.
If you follow this you should be fine.

Allot depends on where you plan to store them. My storage area is about 50degrees or so and has alot of dry air in it. I do water the bulbs but only once a month. I pour a cup of water over the milk crates (20) of them that hold all the plant material I have dug up. I also letthe plants dry, cut off the leaf parts, shake off the dirt, I do not wash them. I then place them in shredded cedar they sell for animal bedding it's $4.00 for a 2cu. yard. I put a thin clear plastic bag into a milk crate. I tag the milk crate with what bulb or tuber is in it. If I am mixing several colors I put each color in an onion bag. I then add several inches of cedar, then a layer of bulbs/tubers & cedar (like a plant lasagna!) until
the top, which I place a topping of cedar. I do not close the plastic only leave it loosely about the milk crate. I stack crate upon crate. I do not get any mold or problems. I use this method because I have a boiler system in my house which is in the basement where these are stored. That system
can tend to produce heat and dryness for the bulbs/tubers. So my system works for me. I would probably get mold with my system in someone elses conditions. Trial and error, and try to understand how the environment is that they will be sleeping in the whole winter. There are many ways that work. Hey people share some!!
Julie

I lift my Dahlias from the garden once the frost has started to turn the foliage black, then once out of the soil, I cut off all the foliage to about 2 inch from the tubers, remove any damaged bit of tuber and roots, dunk them in a bucket of water to get rid of the soil, sometimes use a brush (gently) if it is a bit stubborn, then I sit the tubers upside down on seed trays till all the excess moisture had drained out from the 2 inch stems, if you dont, then rot can set into the tubers, I then put some powder of sulphur (yellow) buy from the drug store, into a plastic bag and shake one tuber at a time into this powder and when dry, I store the tubers in dry sand or compost, mist the compost/sand and leave the tubers over the winter in a frost free room or shed, check them every few weeks to check for mould, rot of any other damage, id any soft bits do appear, I cut it off with a sharp knife and sprinkle the sulphur powder on the wound and replace, I dont touch them till I see the tiny EYE start to grow in spring/early summer, start to give a tiny bit more water, then at planting time, they go back into the garden where I want them to flower, IF by spring, any tubers look dried up, I would put them into a bucket of water to get them to plump up a bit, it would take about an hour for them to plump up that way, have the same tubers for about 10 years and some I have to cut into smaller bits in spring because they are too big, when you cut them, you need bits with an eye, (growing bud)
As for the Begonias, these are called corms, they get lifted when the foliage starts to look tired and flowering has slowed right down, I remove all the foliage from the corm (very gentle) as the part of the corm where the stems are is still alive, I wash them in some water in a bowl, lay them upside down (hollow side down) for a few days like the Dahlias, then powder them with the sulphur, store them in DRY sand or sawdust till next spring, hollow side now uppermost, like the Dahlias, you need to check them for rot or some other decay, mist if you see them start to shrivel up, but try to keep as dry as possible, again you will see tiny little buds (usually pink/red to start with) once this starts, it is time to lay them into moist compost, dont cover the corms, just sink them enough so that the hollow is just level with the top of the compost, the Begonias dont have deep roots as such as all the food storage and growing point is within the corm, like a bulb, it is a little store of all the goodness it needs for foliage and flowers, if you bury them too deep, then they rot very quickly, after a few years when the corms are fatter and bigger, when you see the new little buds start to show, you can cut the corm into sections with a bud, and then you increase the amount of corms you have. everyone has there own way to store these plants, so you will probably be able to choose bits of ideas from all, Don't put them in the fridge as they do not take any kind a frost or too cold, just a place that is frost free, if your cottage dont freeze inside all winter, then that should be fine, but heat at the weekend ain't, so store where they will be constantly cool. great idea to stick a label into the storage boxes as to colour etc so you remember whats what for the following spring. good luck. WeeNel.

Can you dig up the begonias up, put them in a pot with potting soil, bring them inside and keep them going till spring?

sure , you'll need to provide artifical light.
A floressent )sp) shop light works well.

Paul