Sage and Rosemary - Overwintering

[SQWIB]

Even with low temps of 20°F and lower, my Sage and Rosemary are still hanging in there, I'm guessing more than a few days of 20°F and under will do them in.

This is my third year with this Sage, but can never get Rosemary to winter over. The Rosemary was planted from seed and I will be starting some more Rosemary plants this weekend.

[applestar]

They look good.

Rosemary should take off this year. You could also let some branches grow long and then ground-layer for easier propagation. They aren't too difficult to root from cuttings either -- take cuttings from semi-hard wood and score or thinly shave slivers of bark from the bottom couple of inches

[pepperhead212]

I am right over the river from you, and you're right, rosemary won't overwinter, unless we have a super mild one, when it doesn't go under twenty degrees. I have a huge rosemary plant, along with a small, younger plant (started by air layering the old one), and I cover them when I hear it will get into the teens, and I have a mini heater under there that I plug in, when it gets in the low teens and single digits. Only used that once this season.

Sage often dies off when it gets really cold, but comes back in the spring, and mine only died completely once, when we had that wicked winter with a lot of single digit lows. Mine is still hanging on, with only that one really cold snap.

[rainbowgardener]

Yes, sage is much more cold hardy than rosemary. I grew sage outdoors in zone 6 for years and only once did it get winter killed, when we had a super, super cold winter. Rosemary usually doesn't grow outside anywhere colder than zone 7. You can bring it in for the winter and over winter it indoors, though it is a little tricky and often doesn't make it, either making it through the winter or through the transition back outdoors.

[SQWIB]

I am right over the river from you, and you're right, rosemary won't overwinter, unless we have a super mild one, when it doesn't go under twenty degrees. I have a huge rosemary plant, along with a small, younger plant (started by air layering the old one), and I cover them when I hear it will get into the teens, and I have a mini heater under there that I plug in, when it gets in the low teens and single digits. Only used that once this season.

Sage often dies off when it gets really cold, but comes back in the spring, and mine only died completely once, when we had that wicked winter with a lot of single digit lows. Mine is still hanging on, with only that one really cold snap.

Palmyra Cove Nature Center has a huge Rosemary Bush in the front of the building along with some Chinese Fan Palm tree.
I tried one by my pond and it didn't make it.
I guess they winter over at the cove due to the micro climate created by the sun exposure, pavement and brick walls? Who Knows

[SQWIB]

They look good.

Rosemary should take off this year. You could also let some branches grow long and then ground-layer for easier propagation. They aren't too difficult to root from cuttings either -- take cuttings from semi-hard wood and score or thinly shave slivers of bark from the bottom couple of inches

Rosemary grows pretty slow for me, The seeds I started were a few weeks late and the plants didnt start to do much till the end of the season.
I'm gonna try starting seeds about three weeks earlier this year and see if that helps.
I have purchased plants in the past that have done OK if they're established, but I have seen them go for $10.00 a plant or everyone is out of them, must be a popular herb.
I can't justify $10.00 for a plant.

Just curious, why do you say that Rosemary will take off this year?

[SQWIB]

Yes, sage is much more cold hardy than rosemary. I grew sage outdoors in zone 6 for years and only once did it get winter killed, when we had a super, super cold winter. Rosemary usually doesn't grow outside anywhere colder than zone 7. You can bring it in for the winter and over winter it indoors, though it is a little tricky and often doesn't make it, either making it through the winter or through the transition back outdoors.

I had a purple sage that died a few winters ago but I think it was because I cut it back drastically at the end of the season.

[digitS']

Last year, I bought "named" rosemary seeds: Oasis. This is somewhat new for me and I only hope that the plants are good, culinary-wise. Years ago I tried one from seed. No, the plants don't survive outdoors.

For 2 winters, I placed the Rex rosemary plants I propagated from one I bought, on the floor of my basement. The late afternoon sun will track across the floor but the room is really too warm. Another room is cooler but there is no light in there. The second year, I might have had 7 or 8 plants and I remember thinking that 50% of them died. No more of that!

My unheated greenhouse has big Rex plants and quite a few little Oasis plants. If overnight temperatures are approaching single digitS', they get an extra layer of plastic. Below zero, a tarp goes over them, also. I can tell that they don't like any of it! However, it's been about 6 years and I haven't lost a rosemary plant.

I wish I could leave them in the ground instead of potted. That has always worked for sage and thyme. Oregano too, but I don't care about my oregano's flavor. They were started from seed and that may be the problem. Not an oregano expert here (maybe I'm almost a basil expert but I bet that is at least partly because I've got junk oregano .)

This year, the Oasis should be large enough to try in the kitchen. I also have some Rosey rosemary seed. You'd think I would try tasting this Oasis before risking $ on Rosey. Well, I guess I did . That seed was a gift!

Steve

[applestar]

Like most perennials of this type, they need to establish good root system. I have two varieties -- regular unnamed one that I assume is typically only hardy to zone 7 or 8 and a named cultivar called 'Arp' which is supposed to be somewhat more hardy, though I lost one plant in the ground over the winter a couple of years ago.

I have been keeping mine in clay pots or plant in the ground but dig up at the end of the season and overwinter in in the coldest part of the house and/or the unheated garage where it can get down to low to mid-20's at some point -- this has worked well for over 5 years now. I usually take cuttings either around this time of the year or late summer-ish to grow back-up plants. These smaller plants with limited root systems do fine in the house and don't need cold/near dormant treatment. I think I have two from two years ago and two more from last year as well as a medium one that I root pruned in the fall in preparation to attempting to style into a Bonsai (another Bonsai wannabe) in the house, the biggest plant is in the garage.

I want to get a named variety called 'Madalene Hill' next.