a plant is a plant is a plant ...

imo ... the issue is what media.. how well it drains ...

why do you put all the others in the garage??? ...

if it were me .... having gotten very lazy as time goes by ... i would put it against the north side of the house.. no sun on pot to heat roots ... and i would tip it on its side once fully dormant ... and all the better if it gets covered by snow ..its insulation ..

the key is.. get it dormant.. and keep it dormant as late as you can .. and dont let it sit sopping wet in dormancy.. which might be a bit more important with trees in pots ...

its a tree.. nearly indestructible .... if you dont love it to death ...

ken

ps: why cant you just heal it in ... and forget about it .... repot in early spring if you wish ...

"...ps: why cant you just heal it in ... and forget about it .... repot in early spring if you wish ..."

Because I never dig a hole unless I absolutely have to lol!!

Okay Ken, thanks, I think you're right. I'll treat it as I did all those perennials.

By the way, I had that many potted plants for several reasons. My gardens were new and I bought more than I could plant because beds weren't planned or ready yet; I have waaaayyyy too much hard surface in my yard (90 foot driveway that goes along the house and into the back yard, ending in a big square of asphalt in front of the garage, which abuts a large brick patio) so I had lots of potted plants to break up and soften all the asphalt; I went to a couple of swaps a year and came home with too many "rescue plants", taken home at the end when those poor plants still didn't have a home; and I often have a hard time deciding where to plant something, so at the end of the season it needs to go into the garage until I can finally decide (kinda like this river birch haha!)

:)
Dee

If you know where it’s going to be planted, is there a reason you can’t just do it now? Why does it need to be stored over winter? Put up a tree guard or wire netting cylinder to keep animals off it.

I have to move some other stuff to plant the tree. Plus it will be among the roots of the huge oak that was there (there's a 6-7 foot triple stump there now). So I have to move stuff, and then dig in a few spots to find the best spot. Then replant everything. No time or initiative to do it now. Plus if I can't find a good spot, I will have to go to plan b and do all that all over again. It's getting late for all that in New England.

:)
Dee

ah.. i remember those days ... finally got pissed off about all the work storing them away every winter ... so i just started leaving them laying in the garden ... some for many years... lol ... those that perished.. good riddance ... lol .. but then i had to put the pot away ... and those that didnt care.. well .. i learned i didnt have to hoik them in the garage every winter ...

==>> it sounds like your hobby evolved into collecting.. more than planting.. lol ...

ah.. i remember those days ... finally got pissed off about all the wrok storing them away every winter ... so i just started leaving them laying in the garden ... some for many years... lol ... those that perished.. good riddance ... lol .. but then i had to put the pot away ... and those that didnt care.. well .. i learned i didnt have to hoik them in the garage every winter ...

the easiest solution .. is not to buy/acquire ANYTHING... until all the pots are gone ...

not going to happen.. eh???? ... lol

ken

Haha Ken, same here - I either got tired of dragging them all in the garage, or didn't get to it before the first snow, or didn't have room, etc., and then I realized for the most part I didn't HAVE to drag them in - the vast majority of them survived outside against the house just fine.

It's hard to find time to garden - or heck, even just get plants thrown in the ground anywhere! - when you have two small kids involved in many activities and are working four part-time jobs! Now my kids are grown and I'm jobless, but I don't have extra cash to buy plants anyway lol. Funny thing is I have sooo many empty pots in the garage but hesitate to get rid of them all... you know... just in case...

:)
Dee