Thanks Mike for your interesting observations below - originally in answer to a comment from me about Plumbago - regarding winter protection of plants. (Perhaps this should be transferred to a different section?) I like to grow things in pots that are not safely hardy here as some years we can get temperatures well below freezing and always there is the danger of some frosts. Depending on the plants I treat the pots in different ways. those definitely vulnerable to low temperatures are allotted space inside the house on sunny windowsills with plenty of light. Others are moved to more sheltered positions where they can be grouped together to provide added protection and then swathed in several layers of fleece. I am lucky to have two open, but roofed over areas that I can utilise in this way and on the whole it is successful. During particularly mild periods I partially remove the fleece. I have noticed though that when bringing plants through in this way they still often suffer from a certain amount of top growth die back and take a long time to recover in the spring. A case in question this year has been a very pretty pinky/mauve Lantana montevidensis that I found last year. One plant came good in the end and is flowering away merrily still but the other sulked for ages and gradually died away piece by piece.
Some of my pots are too large to move and I have had reasonable success wrapping them round with strong bubble wrap and then using fleece over the top. This is only really feasible when they are not in too prominent position as they do not exactly enhance the garden when treated in this manner. I remember seeing an article (in the RHS magazine I think quite some time back )regarding the artistic protection of plants and pots, I think in Japan. The accompanying photos showed wonderful "wigwam" structures that not only served to protect the specimins inside but also gave a whole new dimension to the winter appearance of the featured garden. I am afraid I am far too busy/lazy to attempt this but was tempted at the time
That sounds nice.
Regarding protecting outdoor pot plants over winter...
I have seen folks wrap the pots in various types of insulation, but they often tuck it under the pots as well. To my mind that is a mistake. That would insulate them from the chilling winds and frosts, but it would also insulate them from the vast heat store that is the ground. I suggest insulating the sides but ensuring the pot rests on the ground.
That is all to give the roots a chance. The top growth is another issue.
Some people use horticultural fleece. But I don't think that's very viable in a med. climate. It makes a greater sail area for the winter storms to catch, making damage more likely (and more likely for the pot to get blown over). I would prefer to move the pots to a sheltered position and give no artificial protection to the top growth. I would not be surprised to have some of the twigs die-off over winter, but that does not worry me unduely.
Of course, it all depends on the hardiness of the plant.
