In past posts, we’ve talked about the fall garden providing during the winter but today we chat the bright, spring charm of the overwintered tender annual.
I write you from a quite sunny day in January, where we’ve already past up one arctic blast, as they say. For some of our fall crops, like broccoli and old lettuce, it was goodbye. The tough guys, like kale and cabbage, looked like Jack Frost hardly paid them a visit. Everyone else was tucked under a layer of sheets, potting buckets or a plastic polytunnel.
What is a “Tender Annual”?
Once you have established which gardening zone you are in, you can establish your growing plan for the year. Growing zone determines seed starting and planting dates. Very cold climates will have a limited growing season, while southern climates can overwinter, start early winter, plant in spring, and prep for fall.
“Annual” means they are planted once and only have the energy for one season. “Tender” refers to their frost tolerance.
Unlike fall plants which enjoy the tapering heat of summer, and can withstand some of the chill of winter, a tender annual is a short lived spring plant that requires maturity in fall and winter protection for spring. Fall plants are harvested at the beginning of winter or during. Tender annuals are seeded in the fall, transplanted under cover and bloom with the warmth of spring. With the low light hours and lack of heat, these plants can hover at a standstill for many weeks as they wait for spring.
Spring Flowers
Zone 8a has a short spring but a mild winter. Our goal with over wintering is to give these cool loving plants a long growing season by extending their growth period over cover. If stock was seeded 4-6 weeks before our last frost and transplanted in late March, it would succumb quickly to the heat of “sometimes” heat of April.
Some tender annuals can survive our climate, like snapdragons, by having a mid season pruning which sends their energy down to the roots while the heat is at its highest. When temperatures cool again in the fall, they will bloom again.
There are wonderful spring flowers that everyone anticipates: daffodils, tulips, hyacinth, & ranunculus. In zone 8a, these bloom from mid-February to mid-April, depending on the flower. There are very few flowers that are ready to brave the chill like these. However, the fall planted, winter protected tender annual SHOULD be ready for harvest around the same time as these. That is what we are testing here in the spring of 2025.
Flowers we have chosen to overwinter:
- Snapdragons
- Feverfew
- Stock
- Scabiosa
- Bells of Ireland
- Strawflower
- Tulips
- Ranunculus
- Anemones
Overwintering Tender Annual Supplies
Here is a list of supplies we use to overwinter our perennials and tender annuals:
- PVC pipe hoop tunnels
- 100 ft. sheets of plastic
- PVC clips
- Plastic pots
- Old bed sheets
- Weights: bricks, rocks, big logs, stakes
Overwintering To-do List
When the winter season is approaching, there are a few tasks to be handled for the garden:
- Flip compost
- Water cover crop
- Mulch perennials & fruit trees
- Remove dead or dying plants
- Read more on our fall blog posts!
When severe winter weather is approaching (ie. 32F and below), it is time to buckle down and finish the winter jobs:
- Heavily water all plants, bushes & trees
- Early in the day, or the day before, cover frost tender plants with plastic hoop tunnels and secure. This will allow the tunnel to warm and maintain the heat longer.
- Put away hoses, watering cans, or anything else made of plastic in a dry, warm and secure place.
- Turn off water sources! We turn off our garden water main at the source, and leave our spigots open to prevent freeze.
Read More
Winter has us brainstorming, preparing and gearing up for the garden season ahead!
To read more about our 2025 Goals, read here.
To read more about growing garlic, read here.
To read more about seed starting, read here.
For a bowl of winter chicken noodle soup, read here.
For a fresh loaf of bread, read here.
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