Some plants are much easier to overwinter in their dormant state than keeping them growing through the winter. But, waking up dormant plants in the spring can be a challenge. Don’t worry, in this post, I will show you exactly how to wake up dormant plants without killing them.
Our winters here in Minnesota are very long and very cold. I have a large collection of tropicals and succulent plants that I overwinter inside the house every year. But keeping all of those plants thriving through the long winter months can be a lot of work.
Controlling houseplant pest infestations and watering, watering, watering during these long months can sometimes become quite the chore.
To make life a little easier for myself during the winter, there are a few types of tropical plants that I let go dormant right in their pots. A few of my favorite plants that go dormant during the winter are my brugmansia, plumeria, peppers and tuberous begonias.
Preparing brugmansia plants for winter dormancy
During their dormant phase, the plants require little care, which makes winter plant storage so much easier! And, since they drop all of their leaves, there’s no need to worry about bugs or leggy leaf growth.
For most of the winter, I store my dormant plants in a dark room and water them sparingly (if at all). Then in the spring I drag them out of the basement and start waking them up (break their dormancy).
Bringing plumeria out of dormancy
How To Bring A Plant Out Of Dormancy
At some point during February or March (whenever I think of it), I will bring the plants out of the dark room and into a room that gets filtered sunlight.
During those few months, it’s not warm enough to move the plants outside, but allowing them to see some sunlight is their first cue to start waking up.
When you force plants to go dormant over the winter, it’s best to wake them up slowly in the spring. If you try to force them to wake up too quickly, it could do them more harm than good… and could even be fatal to the plant.
Dormant plants in winter storage
Tips For Bringing Plants Out Of Winter Dormancy
- It’s best not to overwater a plant during it’s dormancy period, this might cause it to rot. Give it a good drink of water when it’s time to start waking it up, but make sure the excess water drains from the pot.
- Once the plant starts to put on new growth, begin watering as you normally would. This is also a good time to give it a light dose of fertilizer, like compost tea or an organic general purpose fertilizer.
- Don’t put a dormant plant directly into full sun, this may burn the stem and leaf buds. When you first move the plant outside, place it in a spot where it will initially be protected from full sun, wind and rain. Then gradually move it to it’s full sun location over a few weeks, giving it plenty of time to get used to the intense sun.
- Once you move the plant outside, if the temperature will get below 45F, move the plant back into the house to protect it from getting too cold.
- Winter growth will be weak and may burn off once you have moved the plant back to it’s full sun location. This is normal. You may choose to prune of the weak growth from the plant, but it’s probably not necessary.
- If your plant needs to be repotted, this is the perfect time, and repotting will also help to break dormancy in plants. Most plants will grow just fine in a general purpose potting soil, but you can look up the best type of soil for the specific plant you’re growing.
- Don’t feel bad if a dormant plant never wakes up! It’s frustrating but it happens to the best of us.
Brugmansia plant in dormant state
It’s a bit of work to overwinter dormant plants and wake them up in the spring, but it’s worth it. I get to enjoy my favorite plants every summer, and it’s much cheaper than buying the same plants every spring.
More Posts About Overwintering Plants
- How To Overwinter Sweet Potato Vines Indoors
- How To Overwinter Coleus Plants Indoors
- Overwintering Tropical Plants Indoors
- How To Store Dahlia Bulbs For The Winter
How do you wake up dormant plants in the spring? Share your tips in the comments below.
Alison says
Oh No! I have three brugs that have been sitting all winter in a south-facing window. Should I not have done that? They have been dropping a few leaves, but not all of them. I don't think they've gone dormant. They are pretty small, still just rooted cuttings that I got about a year ago. They grew hardly at all last summer, and when it got cold I brought them indoors.
Amy Andrychowicz says
Hi Alison!
Great question! Don't worry, your brugmansias are fine. You don't have to force dormancy on them, you can keep them growing during the winter. Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. I only force mine to go dormant so I don't have to worry about caring for them all winter. Last fall, mine had aphids really bad and I didn't want to deal with them all winter. No leaves, no bugs. 🙂 Here’s a detailed post about the different ways you can overwinter brugmansia plants.
Ash says
Awesome and Informative article. I have stored 5 Brugs in my cold dark cellar all winter long. Recently, when i pull them out I noticed two of them have wrinkled trunk and stem, where as rest are green and firm.
Not sure if the wrinkled brugs are dead ….what would you suggest ?
I am in Tornto,Canada(Zone 6b)
Amy Andrychowicz says
Thanks, glad you liked the article! I would still try to wake them up. Give your brugmansias a good drink of water and move them to a sunny spot. Don’t give up on them until all the others have started to grow leaves, and it’s clear they are goners. I hope they will wake up for you! 🙂
Joyce says
I’m still waiting for mine to come out of dormancy in July. It has leaves starting but won’t budge. I live in Az. This is a new plant, I started last summer.
Amy Andrychowicz says
What type of plant are you waiting on? It’s hard to know for sure without knowing what type of plant it is… but if it has leaves, then it’s alive so you could try potting it up, giving it fertilizer, and/or giving it more sun to help break it’s dormancy and trigger new growth.
KATHY says
My plumerias are having trouble waking up this year. They have all sent up bloom stalks but no leaves. Looks kind of strange. Should I be worried?
Amy Andrychowicz says
No, you don’t need to be worried. Blooming plumerias it a good thing. 🙂 Sometimes they bloom before they grow leaves. The leaves will follow soon.
Shirley Mendez says
Hey I got some pivet shrubs shipped in dormant stage. I put them in potting soil & watered them. Got them in sun maybe half a day. Is that good or should I move them. How long should it be before I see life in them?
Amy Andrychowicz says
Humm, I’m not familiar with pivet shrubs, so I have no idea how long it will be before you can expect to see signs of life on your dormant shrubs. I would keep them out of the hot afternoon sun until they wake up and start to grow new foliage. Put them in a shady location, or a place that gets early morning and/or evening sun only. Good luck!
June says
Hello Amy,
I have a problem with my Plumeria.
I bought it last August and it was full of leaves but no flowers.
The overwintering process went perfectly, and waking it up also gone as you’ve described, on March I brought it to light, on April it started to produce new leaves that grew up very slowly, and on June I put it in the sun behind a sunny window, I don’t have outdoor, and the watering and fertilising go regularly as well.
The problem now is the leaves are still not growing! They reach to one inch long, stay closed, and eventually they turn yellow and fall off.
It’s still producing new leaves, but I’m afraid the time is gone to see any big green things, and it will become dormant again soon.
What did go wrong?
Amy Andrychowicz says
Oh no, sorry to hear that your plant is struggling. I wonder if it has a bug problem. Spider mites are very common on plumeria leaves, and other pests sometimes can attack them too. Take a close look at the leaves and see if you spot any webbing or bugs. If bugs aren’t the issue, then make sure you’re not overwatering it. Take a look at my detailed plumeria plant care guide for more information and help with troubleshooting problems.
Olwyn Fleury says
I have a Plumeria that has never bloomed but has 7 or 8 leaves. It has taken me all summer to get it this point and I’d rather not have it go dormant. Some leaves are mottled due to the few coldish nights it spend on our screened in porch, but now I have it under a plant light in an east window, with a small humidifier nearby and a new leaf has opened. Is this how I should keep it growing over winter? Will this hurt it in the long run? Also how often do I water it over winter before it goes outside again in May? I live in Toronto Canada. Thanks so much!!
Amy Andrychowicz says
Winter dormancy is part of the normal lifecycle of plumerias. So, even if it doesn’t drop all of it’s leaves, it will still go into some state of dormancy. I have found that it’s much easier to work with the natural lifecycle of the plant. Dormancy doesn’t stop plumerias from flowering, so there’s no worries there. Here’s a detailed post that I wrote about how to grow and care for plumerias, which give all the details about how to grow plumerias, including dormancy and how to get them to flower, and tons more… Plumeria Plant Care Guide