Moving plants outdoors, early 2017 edition

[Orchid Whisperer]

When are YOU moving your plants outdoors?

I'm in USDA zone 8a in north Georgia. I've actually had a few hardier plants that have spent most of this winter outdoors, except for a few "cold snaps" lasting a few days to a week. This includes my Coelogyne cristata, my only Cymbidium (blooming now), Epidendrum radicans, and occasionally Maxillaria tenuifolia. These have all responded really well.

The next two weeks will have days in the 60s F, lows in the 40s F, warming to 70s/50s. I'm planning on moving a significant number of plants outdoors, but leaving the more cold-sensitive plants indoors a while longer. The plants should benefit from the extra light, air movement, and spring rainfall. The cooler temperatures may even encourage some blooming. I fully realize that I will likely have to move some or all back indoors again before April. Last year I moved plants out in mid March and never looked back. February 17 will be the earliest I have ever moved plants outdoors.

Anyone else considering an outdoor move this early?

[Dollythehun]

Indiana weather is unsettled until at least mother's day and preferably the end of May. This coming warm spell, 60s won't last. Still, I thought about putting my Dendrobium out.

[katrina]

Like Indiana, Ohio weather won't allow a move until sometime in May. I like to move everything in one weekend so I base it on my warm growers...and that typically means late May for me.

I got tricked one spring and moved everything out mid may and shortly after the move we got hit with a solid week+ of cold and rain. We were doing renovations on the house that year and i had no choice but to leave the plants where they were...I lost some of the warmer growers. I tried tarping everything but it was too little, too late, for some. As a rule, I now wait...regardless of what Ma Nature might be trying to convince me to think.

[Dollythehun]

True wisdom. 😉

[Optimist]

Where I am at: East Central New Mexico, I wouldn't yet. The temps get beautiful for orchids, but the next day, it suddenly snows or something similar. I do take the orchids outside a few at a time to bask in the sun. As embarrassing as it seems, I forgot one, a year or so back, and it was frozen to death overnight, so I always must remember to get them in before dark. Mid-march might be better for taking them out here.

[MrHappyRotter]

I keep most of my collection indoors year round. Fewer bugs and pests that way, more consistent growth overall, fewer disasters. The plants I put outside are primarily the big plants and the high light plants that wouldn't be sustainable indoors year round.

Technically I grow some plants outside almost year round, since I bring them in during cold spells, and move them out when it's warm enough. Probably very similar to Georgia, around here winter means our temperatures are all over the place. We'll have a week of temps in the 60s & 70s, then a few days with highs in the 30s, then 50s for a while, 80s, then 20s -- you get the picture.

Towards the end of March or beginning of April I'll move the big stuff outside, knowing that our frost date is mid-April, so there's always a chance I have to bring things back in for a few days. It's hit or miss whether that becomes necessary, though. I think I did have to bring things back in last year due to a late frost. I tend to move stuff incrementally. As we get more and longer stretches of warm weather, I start adding more plants to the transient mix.

[rbarata]

I don't change my orchids.
The ones that are outside, stay there always, no matter the meteo conditions. The ones inside, rarely change them. When it happens that's because they give me signs of inadaptation.

The assumptions to do not moving them are:

1 - I'm lazy.

2 - When moving them inside in my climate there's high risks of transporting pests inside.

3 - I only buy orchids according my environmental conditions because I'm lazy, don't want pests inside and, by knowing my conditions are the correct ones, I avoid the hussle of moving everything in and out.

[Orchid Whisperer]

Hi everyone. I appreciate the replies and understand the reasons for NOT moving out yet.

I likely will go ahead with move because:
- Over all, it's a warm climate here, and relatively stable. We are not likely to get an unpredictable swing in temperature that is 10 F different from the forecast.
- If a cold front moves through, I know that a temperature drop is expected, and I can act accordingly.
- I'm only doing a partial move for now. Everything that is going out can be moved back indoors in an hour or so.
- I will re-evaluate the weather frequently, both short and long-range forecasts. It is certainly possible everything will move back in a couple weeks- or possibly everything can stay out?

I can live with the consequences if I mess up. I'm not intending to risk any impossible-to-replace plants.

[jkofferdahl]

Originally Posted by Orchid Whisperer

When are YOU moving your plants outdoors?

I'm in USDA zone 8a in north Georgia. I've actually had a few hardier plants that have spent most of this winter outdoors, except for a few "cold snaps" lasting a few days to a week. This includes my Coelogyne cristata, my only Cymbidium (blooming now), Epidendrum radicans, and occasionally Maxillaria tenuifolia. These have all responded really well.

The next two weeks will have days in the 60s F, lows in the 40s F, warming to 70s/50s. I'm planning on moving a significant number of plants outdoors, but leaving the more cold-sensitive plants indoors a while longer. The plants should benefit from the extra light, air movement, and spring rainfall. The cooler temperatures may even encourage some blooming. I fully realize that I will likely have to move some or all back indoors again before April. Last year I moved plants out in mid March and never looked back. February 17 will be the earliest I have ever moved plants outdoors.

Anyone else considering an outdoor move this early?

OW, if you're in 8A, north Georgia then you might be close to me. I live in Smyrna and work in Alpharetta. Where are you?

I know a lot of people put their plants out down here. I personally don't, but if I did I think I'd wait a bit yet. I know the forecasts here, but it's STILL WINTER! Something inside me rails against the idea of putting orchids outside in the winter.

There was a time when I did move plants outdoors. I've grown into a lazy old man, however, and don't feel like expending the energy each Fall to de-bug, de-slug, de-weed, and otherwise de-problem the plants. I'm getting good results under my lights.

[Leafmite]

I am probably going to give keeping the plants indoors a try. I am already looking at lights set-ups for my larger indoor trees. The weather here in Ohio has just been crazy these past few years and, combined with the mosquito issues, neighborhood cats knocking off plants from my outdoor plant shelves, the scale and mealy bugs, and having pill-bugs eating all the roots of my orchids this past summer, it finally makes sense to grow them indoors all year.