Dangerous territory

It's frost time, and my front hall is now home to the six brugs that gave so much pleasure this summer and early fall. They've been burnt by the cold, and the leaves are drying and shrivelled. One plant is still blooming, lucky me!

Here's my 'strategic' set of questions, which I can't seem to find answers to in my searches.

1. Take cuttings? This would save space but requires lights, I assume? Rooting hormone? Water or ProMix?

2. Dormancy. Allow to die back and live in low-light, minimal watering over the winter.

3. Cut down. Cut the stems (which are about 2 inches in diameter at the base) back to 1-5 feet?

4. Junk them. Arrrrgggggghh They're my babies and performed magnificently. I had people from around the city coming to see them! We just don't see plants like this in our part of the world.

I have a very small basement, so cuttings would be best for me. Will this work?

My best regards to the DG brug fanciers... you now have a new population of friends in Ottawa!

Long cuttings will root in a bucket of water in your basement over winter... or you can do shorter cuttings and start anew. I allow my shorter cuttings to get white nubs on them in water, then pot up in a mix with good drainage and put them on a heat mat until growth appears.. then move to more light and let them start growing out. Even the rootball left in the pot will put forth new shoots in Spring if you have enough space to protect the pots from freeze... Is space your limitation? Whatever you decide, DON'T junk them... they'll perform again next season.

Andy, definitely don't toss them! I've done a combination of things that you questioned. I've moved about 6 full plants into the kitchen, living room and bedroom, which I hope to continue growing throughout the winter. I also have some smaller ones that have dropped most leaves that I will keep in my garage to go dormant. I also cut up many of them and had them in a bucket forming nubbies. I planted some of these when they developed roots and mailed of most of the rest.

If you keep them in water, remember to change the water a couple of times a week.

You'll have plenty of beauty next spring! :-)

Indoors, your Brugs will not go dormant. It is not cold enough. My Brugs overwinter in a greenhouse and continue to grow. I have the thermostat set at 45ºF, but because temperature variation is so great, the Brugs never go dormant.

Frost damage may be minimal. Don't cut back until spring when new growth starts. If you have to cut back, use a fungicide spray on the cut surfaces to prevent die back. Take cuttings as back up.

If you take at least some cuttings... it will give you a "back up" if the parent plant doesn't make it.. kinda like insurance. At the same time, you will be developing your rooting skills. :)

Such great information, thank you all. I'll be working on saving these beauties next week. And attaching labels! they were all so different -- fragrance, form, bloom size, colour, timing. I learned a lot about fertilizing, so rooting cuttings is my next challenge. I'll keep you posted. --A

I agree with cuttings - but still keep the plants in a basement if you can with limited water and bring back into south sun part of house in early spring (like March for you)