Styrofoam cones for winter protection

From: Lester Kallus lkallus at earthlink.net> on 1999.09.08 at 22:50:23(3628) I'm not sure if I read about winter protection in this listserver or the Zingiber listserver. Somewhere, I heard of some Styrofoam-like material that was cone shaped and was placed over a tender plant to add winter protection. Reportedly it added a zone or 2 of winter tolerance. I've looked in the local Home Depot, local Hardware store, a couple nurseries and have even called a plastic pot wholesaler but can't come up with any information. Does anyone have any experience with these and if so, does anyone know of a supplier so that I can get the local nursery to purchase a mass of them? Thanks, Les

From: Ellen Hornig hornig at Oswego.EDU> on 1999.09.09 at 14:34:01(3630) Les - the styrofoam cones to which you refer are sold locally as "rose cones", and can be found in pretty much every garden center, Kmart, WalMart and similar. I assume you're just too far south for the local stores to offer these- Ellen +More ******************************************************************* Ellen Hornig Seneca Hill Perennials 3712 County Route 57 Oswego, New York 13126 USDA zone 5B (mintemps -10 to -20F) (315) 342-5915 Website: www.senecahill.com

From: Dean Sliger deanslgr at kode.net> on 1999.09.09 at 14:38:26(3631) Lester Kallus wrote: > Does anyone have any experience with these and if so, does anyone know of a supplier so that I can get the local nursery to purchase a mass of them? Les, Those are commonly used for roses, usually sold as "rose cones." I imagine they're a seasonal product, though I can't imagine that those places you mentioned haven't even heard of them. Try looking later this month or on October; they're usually everywhere, come in different sizes. Dean Sliger +More Warren, MI, USA Zone 6B

From: Don Martinson llmen at execpc.com> on 1999.09.09 at 14:42:40(3632) >I'm not sure if I read about winter protection in this listserver or the >Zingiber listserver. Somewhere, I heard of some Styrofoam-like material >that was cone shaped and was placed over a tender plant to add winter >protection. Reportedly it added a zone or 2 of winter tolerance. Les... Those things are quite common up here in the Great White North come fall. They are commonly called Rose cones, as they are commonly placed over roses for winter protection. A problem that most folks have is that in the warmer days of late winter (i.e. March) they can heat up inside and cause mold problems. This can be ameliorated somewhat by poking holes in the top for heat to escape. They are also quite light weight and must be weighted down by a brick or stone. I prefer to use a tall bushel basket type of thing commonly called a bean hamper (hard to find and I'm dating myself by even remembering when beans were sold in these things). I can't see that they would be any better than a good layering of mulch unless one has some above ground growth you wish to protect. As far as giving a zone or 2 of protection, I'd be dubious, since these don't actually provide any warmth (except as noted above), only provide protection against drying winds and frost heaving. Don +More Don Martinson Milwaukee, Wisconsin Mailto:llmen@execpc.com

From: IntarsiaCo at aol.com on 1999.09.09 at 14:49:25(3634) Les, They are called rose cones. They come in several sizes. Try AGWAY. You can also use those cheap styrofoam coolers. Regards, Mark Mazer

From: JRugh1 at aol.com on 1999.09.09 at 14:52:41(3635) Sure, they are Rose protectors. I am not sure where you are located, but here in New England they are common but very seasonal. They arrive at the nurseries, Wall Marts and Home Depots late in the fall. I doubt if you could find one now. Several of the big mail order nurseries also carry them. I have used them to get small rhodies though early years. They seem to work. Some come with wire pins to hold them down, cheaper ones don't have pins. A similar item consists of strips of wavy plastic that clips together to form a ring. You place this 12" high ring around the plant and fill with mulch. I have clipped two together to make a very large ring for marginally small shrubs. +More Jim

From: Lester Kallus lkallus at earthlink.net> on 1999.09.12 at 01:11:55(3639) Thanks, all, for the response. I'll check a couple garden centers but although I live in 7a and although it does get downright chilly around here, I can say that I've never seen anything even remotely like what's been described at any of the stores here on Long Island. Perhaps with sufficient nagging, I can change that. The next question is: will these truly work to help borderline hardy material survive the winter? Although Colocasia esculenta and Alocasia macrorrhiza have been reported to be hardy around here, I've see nearly all of them turn into compost (except the couple that were planted adjacent to my previously heat-leaking house. I was hoping to leave some of that material in the ground to cut down on both the fall work of bringing everything in and the spring work of replanting. I've also read that Colocasia antiquorum *should* be hardy here (but also turns into compost). I do have sandy soil and the compost isn't a terrible addition, but I can think of cheaper sources for the organic material. Les +More At 09:43 AM 09/09/1999 -0500, you wrote: > >I'm not sure if I read about winter protection in this listserver or the > >Zingiber listserver. Somewhere, I heard of some Styrofoam-like material > >that was cone shaped and was placed over a tender plant to add winter > >protection. Reportedly it added a zone or 2 of winter tolerance. > > >Les... > >Those things are quite common up here in the Great White North come fall. >They are commonly called Rose cones, as they are commonly placed over roses >for winter protection. A problem that most folks have is that in the >warmer days of late winter (i.e. March) they can heat up inside and cause >mold problems. This can be ameliorated somewhat by poking holes in the top >for heat to escape. They are also quite light weight and must be weighted >down by a brick or stone. I prefer to use a tall bushel basket type of >thing commonly called a bean hamper (hard to find and I'm dating myself by >even remembering when beans were sold in these things). > >I can't see that they would be any better than a good layering of mulch >unless one has some above ground growth you wish to protect. As far as >giving a zone or 2 of protection, I'd be dubious, since these don't >actually provide any warmth (except as noted above), only provide >protection against drying winds and frost heaving. > >Don > >Don Martinson >Milwaukee, Wisconsin >Mailto:llmen@execpc.com > >

From: Al Wootten awootten at NRAO.EDU> on 1999.09.13 at 15:46:20(3646) Lester Kallus writes: > Thanks, all, for the response. I'll check a couple garden centers but although I live in 7a and although it does get downright chilly around here, I can say that I've never seen anything even remotely like what's been described at any of the stores here on Long Island. > > Perhaps with sufficient nagging, I can change that. > > The next question is: will these truly work to help borderline hardy material survive the winter? Although Colocasia esculenta and Alocasia macrorrhiza have been reported to be hardy around here, I've see nearly all of them turn into compost (except the couple that were planted adjacent to my previously heat-leaking house. I was hoping to leave some of that material in the ground to cut down on both the fall work of bringing everything in and the spring work of replanting. I've also read that Colocasia antiquorum *should* be hardy here (but also turns into compost). I do have sandy soil and the compost isn't a terrible addition, but I can think of cheaper sources for the organic material. I have both Colocasia esculenta and Alocasia macrorrhiza at my house. This is within 200 feet of the Rappahannock River at its confluence with the Chesapeake Bay, so the winters are very moderate--oleander survives most winters without dieback. The soil is sandy. I've found that although the Colocasia survives, mostly it seems to be buds on the sides of the larger corm which return the following year--the larger corm usually turns pretty much to mush. Alocasia vanished entirely last year but I have a few very small bits of it beginning to come back. I won't leave either one out for a second winter; the Alocasia would, I feel, not survive a second winter. Various Calla lilies seem to overwinter very nicely (ditto Canna). Clear skies, Al +More +---------------------------------------------------------+ |Al Wootten, Slacktide, Sturgeon Creek at the Rappahannock| |Astronomer (http://www.cv.nrao.edu/~awootten/) | |genealogy homepage http://members.tripod.com/~astral | |Deltaville, Virginia (804)776-6369 | +---------------------------------------------------------+

From: Jmh98law at aol.com on 1999.09.15 at 05:06:27(3651) Having checked with the local Home Depot garden center, I've learned the following that may help any of those who wish to try these: The large size of "rose cones" [labeled "Plant Protector"] costs $2.36/each Home Depot's stock # is: 153647 Home Depot here usually will order in a stock item, even though the store does not carry it. Those who wish to try this, who have a Home Depot nearby, may be able to obtain these. I've also bought them at Ace Hardware. Using the term "Plant Protector", you may be able to have your local Ace order them if you have no Home Depot nearby. +More Jeanne Hannah

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