There must be a way to overwinter water hyacinth inside.

[bobidiboo]

I have searched posts but can't find an answer - I have tried to overwinter water hyacinth several times with intense plant lights and they never make it. I am wondering if I pot the hyacinth like a water Lilly but just put the potted hyacinth in a tub of water a couple inches over the planter would that work? My water hyacinths outside that take root in the soil when the pond dries up some seem to be much larger and hardier. If anyone knows the answer please call me with this cell phone.


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[finsNfur]

I tried it last year in our basement, by putting several plants in a bucket of water next to a very small window. It gets down to the 50's during the winter in our basement. The hyacinths died pretty quickly. In fact, they are still outside in my pond, and it's dropping into the 50's, even the 40's at night, and they are starting to look sickly already.

 

[Desertponder]

Water hyacinths are really difficult to overwinter. They take a lot of light and a lot of heat. Most of the time they fail before it gets warm enough to put them back outside in the spring.

I have tried several times over the years to overwinter them. I would put several in a clear plastic container filled with water and set them on a shelf that went across a south facing window. They would actually do really well but something would always end up killing them. One year I was really busy and forgot to check the water level in the container and it went bone dry and they dried up. Last year I tried again and this time mites attacked them and by the time I realized it they were goners. Other years I know they just did not have enough light. Conditions have to be just right for them or they won't make it. They will do fine for awhile but by late January, early Feb. they just waste away.
A number of years ago I did see a person post on a forum that she had successfully overwintered them by potting them in really soupy mud and placing the pots in front of her south facing windows.
I'm not even going to try to overwinter any this year. I'll just go to the local nursery and buy my usual three plants for the year. It doesn't take long for those three to become many.

 

[joeski]

It is not worth trying to overwinter those plants, just buy new ones in the spring, they are very inexpensive to buy on ebay.

 

[satanpie]

how about putting them into a fishtank? i realize this is very risky, but if i cleaned them off well, and put them in my 75G tropical tank, with 93 watts of light, do you think that would work?

 

[bobidiboo]

I've tried many times. They won't survive the winter in an aquarium or any tank of water even with plant lights - I think they need to be potted in rich mud with good plant lights and kept flooded - I'm trying it now cause that's the only thing I haven't tried. Nothing else works - they live a while but gradually die off. I have large ponds to cover and I'd have to buy too many. If I can over winter 4 or 5 dozen I can have a nice pond cover and don't want to buy that many in spring if I can over winter. To buy say 5 or 6 won't do it - they'll just be starting to spread good by end of summer and have to die. I'd rather buy water lilies if I'm going to spend more than $20 or $30 . At least they'll spread and come back each year.