looks like the car isnt going in the garage for 2 or 3 months....

that seems to be the easiest suggestion to me

ken

I would take them out of the garage and put thenm on the ground on the north side or a shady location and cover them with a tarp and secure it and not worry about them until mid April.The ground will regulate their temperature and slow them down again.

Denny

I have the same thing happen year after year as I have big planters full of hostas for the front of the house. First I stop parking in the garage as the warm car engine encourages early growth. I've brought some inside. I've had some wonderful Easter centerpieces of potted hostas - Blue Mouse Ears in bloom was the most memorable. That was the year we had a week of 70's in February. Or depending on the size of the pots - big ones move outside if you are sure there are no more sub zero temps. Smaller pots - do what Denny said. I've rarely lost a potted hosta stored in the garage. If anything, some have not been as big once planted outside, but recover in a year.

I would move them to the coldest part of the garage, consider cooling off the garage during the coldest days/night, don't open the door when it is warm. Fight the urge to water or it will encourage them even more and risk more issues later.

Personally I think if you move them outdoors then there will be even greater temperature extremes for them to deal with at this point.

I've left hostas in the garage for months, heck I even forgot about some one year and found them in July, and they were fine. When I rushed them I lost a couple...

Good luck.

Chris

You could also move them to the north side of the house, break open a couple of bales of straw, and cover the pots with a foot of loose straw. This will allow the cold ground in that area to stop the growth, but the straw will give some protection to the shoots that are already up, in addition to keeping everything insulated. I've done this with potted hostas and it's been very successful, with no loses at all, even when we have a spring of constant freeze and thaw cycles.

Wow, toughie, indeed. I like all sorts of suggestions here, and think Chris' is certainly on target. In any event, the key word is 'insulation' to keep the temps 'moderated', just a thought.

amateur,

hh

Put as many as possible on the floor to have direct contact with the cold floor. If floor space is limited, the most vulnerable should get the prime space. If your garage faces north, it will stay colder than if it faces south. Chris is right, keep the door closed, keep the temp as stable and low as possible. If you put them outside, sun even on cold days will warm them, so staying in a cold dark place will retard their growth.

I have dozens in the garage every year. Some are tiny minis that were too small to put in the ground, or small divisions. Others are in all kinds of large terra cotta, glazed, plastic etc. pots. Never had one die over the winter, no matter how small. I have a long shallow box that I put the babies in. It hold 2 dozen plus. That goes on top of a shelf. They keep each other at an even temp, and maybe safe from drying out too much, inside that box. I make sure none are put away wet, or even very damp. Some have started to grow when I haul them out in April. They are blanched -looking. I park them in a totally shady spot until the eyes adjust and color up. Don't want to have the sun burn them.

Thanks, everyone. Unfortunately the garage is on the south side. The first group of pots went out under the leyland cyress in plastic bags. The ones with eyes up (turns out there were more) are still in my garage. I don't want to risk losing the eyes. It is summosed to be snow showers today, so tomorrow I will try to get the rest out in bags in a shady spot. Wish I had leaves or hay.

I learned this from a grower. He had hostas in pots so I asked him if he overwintered them outside. He said he did and to help prevent water from puddling up on top he waited til the soil was frozen and then tipped the pot on its side. I have Golden Tiara and I want to put it in a pot and overwinter it. Think I'll try his method.

Marric,
I tried the pots on their side thing when I was new at this and had two problems occur. The soil in the pots all settled to one side and left roots exposed which led to volestation on the pots on the ground.Voles may not be a problem in your local but they are a terror here! Field mice will also attack a tasty Hosta root in the winter. I do my best to avoid either one by putting the pots on thick landscape fabric add bait and cover them with thick tarps.I don't water them at all from Decenber until April. I Roll the tarps back in mid April but not all of the way so that I can cover the plants quickly if a cold snap comes. This method has worked very well for me.

Denny