Melinda's Garden Moment Radio Tips
Melinda Myers
Nationally known gardening expert, TV/Radio host, author & columnist with over 30 years of horticulture experience and tons of gardening information to share! www.melindamyers.comMelinda's Garden Moment videos will help you create that beautiful landscape you’ve always wanted. Each week throughout the growing season, a new gardening video will be added right here, so be sure to stop back. You can also watch Melinda’s Garden Moments on your local network TV station affiliate.
Mandevilla, now botanically known as Dipladenia, is a popular vine with shiny green leaves and trumpet shaped flowers in red, white, pink, yellow or apricot. This tropical vine is only hardy in frost-free areas. That means the rest of us need to overwinter it indoors if we want to save the plant for next year’s garden.
If indoor growing space is limited, consider taking 4 to 6” cuttings. Dip the cut end in a rooting hormone and stick it in moist vermiculite or a well-drained potting mix to root. Then plant it and grow it like a houseplant.
Or move the whole plant indoors in front of a sunny window and grow it like a houseplant. Water thoroughly when the top inch of soil is starting to dry.
A third option is storing it in a cool dark location. Water just often enough to keep the roots from drying out.
A bit more information: Be sure to quarantine any plants you move indoors before adding them to your indoor garden. Monitor the plants for several weeks, watching for any pests that may have hitched a ride inside on the plant.