zone question
 

to shrubs were given to me

the "magician deutzia"
and "diana althea"

my question is these plants are for zone 5

and i live in a zone 4 area in michigan

how can i care for these plants in the winter so i don't loose them

and what is the zone is it ground freezing or the spring buds getting damaged

please help
jeff

"longstreet" wrote in message
...

to shrubs were given to me

the "magician deutzia"
and "diana althea"

my question is these plants are for zone 5

and i live in a zone 4 area in michigan

how can i care for these plants in the winter so i don't loose them

and what is the zone is it ground freezing or the spring buds getting
damaged


The zone is based on the average low temperature. It doesn't take into
account the summer high temperatures, growing degree days, etc. You can
often "push" a zone if you are careful. The deutzia might be fine in
planted on the south side of your house near a large thermal mass or in a
protected area. When you push the zone you have to accept some damage which
could include the loss flower buds and/or tip die-back. Using an
antidessicant sometimes helps. Some shrubs can benefit from a jacket of
burlap. In a worst case situation they may be lost since the average low
temperature is occasionally exceeded. Our average low is between 0F
and -10F but sometimes it gets as low as -20.

thanks for the info my plants are located on the east side in the yard

i just put some small gravel around the base of each plant
and when it becomes more convenient i am going to

put burlap or gunny sacks or what ever they are called i'll put them around the plants and hope for the best

next spring i'll find out

thank you again for the help