Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
Here is a picture of my sweet girl, Minnie. I had her put to sleep on 6/1/2020. She was a toy poodle, 18 years old and my emotional support animal. To remember her, I bought myself a petunia plant and had it outside all summer. I live in Buffalo, NY, in the Northeast and my petunia still looks fine, but it's now cold and I don't want it to die.
The 10 inch pot has holes drilled on the bottom. Can I keep it alive in my house over the winter? I have a basin that my washing machine drains into, so I thought I could water it in there and somehow have it drain in there overnight and then perhaps put it somewhere in my house. For the summer, I had it outside on a plastic chair that had slats in the bottom for the water to drain from the pot. I have them in the house now on a throw rug that I can shake outside.
Is it a good idea to bring my petunias in? Can I keep them alive inside my home? I'd hate to throw them out. Thanks in advance for any advice!
(The petunias in the picture here are from another summer. Wasn't Minnie beautiful? I miss her so much, my dear, sweet baby :( )
These plants are perennials and normally can grow year-round in warmer climates. However, it is possible to bring them in during the winter months so you can put them out again. These plants don't do good inside your home if it is too warm. You will need to find a good place for the plant that isn't too hot for this plant to survive inside. Many growers suggest that you find a place in your garage that is out of the way to winter the plant in. This plant can tolerate temperatures as low as 39 degrees during the winter months. During the winter months, it is suggested that you water these planes once every 3 to 4 weeks or when the soil is really dried out.
How do you pinch back petunias to keep them from being so "leggy"?
By Sue
As a flower dies, pinch that stem back to just above a leaf. If it is already leggy, just pinch back just above a leaf wherever and it should branch out and keep flowering.
I want my Petunias to bloom more fully and I have read that I should pinch them back. Where do I pinch and how much?
Hardiness Zone: 6a
By sharon cady from Indianapolis, IN
Pinch off the flower just below the blossom but if the stems are dried out cut them back to where the dry area ends.
I live in California and I just whack my petunias way back with my pruning shears to about 2 inches. I do it several times a year They come back great.
What I always do is just remove the blooms when they start to shrivel up. This is what I have always been told to do. Otherwise the petunias quit blooming.
I was told from a local nursery that on your petunias you cut them back 1/3 when you plant them and then again in July. It takes them a little time to grow back out but they get so thick and bushy, their beautiful. Pattysue
I have petunias in a hanging basket. It seems to have leaf mold. We have been having some hot and humid weather lately. The plant does get full sun and looks beautiful but the center leaves are dying and the mold is spreading. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to remedy this and ways to prevent this problem?
Try some baking soda in a spray bottle and spray your plants ? Mite work and won't hurt them.
Editor's Note: Baking soda will kill weeds so I don't think it would work and might kill the plants.
Use a Q-tip or cotton ball moistened with alcohol and gently wipe the mold off a few leaves. Wait a day or two to see if the plant is OK and the mold is gone. If so, treat the entire plant. If it doesn't help or harms the few places you have treated, just 'prune' out the damaged pieces.
For mold removal, there is an enzyme based cleaner that has apparently been used successfully on plants. I recall reading their faq sheet online and you might want to check them out. Their products are very safe.
They carry MoldZyme - I use it for mold removal on my showers, gutters, etc (you name it). The company that manufactures it is EcoDisocoveries (www.ecodiscoveries.com).
Hope this helps in your quest for mold removal from plants.
-John
Can you please tell me where to find a picture of the life cycle of petunias? Please.
By Flower power from Childers
It's very easy search for picture of the life cycle of petunias, lot of pictures & info there, good luck.
Hardiness Zone: 5a
Mary from Green Bay, Wisconsin
Since your petunias started out fine I doubt very much you have a soil problem. Are you planting them in the same spot each year? One interesting thing I learned about Wave petunias just this year is that they should not be planted in the same beds two consecutive years in a row. Yep, crop rotation is recommended for petunias-specifically for Wave petunias. This little gem of information comes directly from the official Wave Petunia website, http://www.wave-rave.com. Apparently the first year you plant them they will do great. Each consecutive year you plant them in the same spot after that they have a tendency to decline. I imagine the decline is due to that fact that they are such heavy feeders. So, if you are planting them in the same beds every year, try moving them to a different spot in the garden next year and see what happens.
Ellen
I'm from south-central WI and I thought this year's wave plants were nowhere near the quality that they have been in previous years. Even when shopping for them, I thought the blossoms looked about a third of the size of last year's batch.
Check out these photos.
Last fall, when it came time to take this petunia plant down, I trimmed it back and placed it under the house, right inside the crawlspace door to see if I could keep it through the winter. Keeping a check on it, I watered it a little a couple of times.
