How do you overwinter plants that are in the pond?

Plants currently in the pond are parrot's feather, water fringe, minature water lily, water lettuce, fairy moss, primrose creeper and water milfoil. I also have some goldfish that i know can overwinter in the pond. It does not freeze solid in the winter here in Australia. My area is zone 8.



How do i overwinter the plants?



With the submerged plants do I just cut some stems and put them in a bucket with mud on the bottom and put it in the basement where it gets no sunlight?

Or do i just leave the submerged plants in their pot and in the following spring leave it the way it was without cutting?



What do i do with the water fringe and water lillies?

Since the lily pad and water fringe are hardy, do i leave it in the pond and in the following spring cut all the leaves off to encourage new growth?

How do you overwinter plants that are in the pond?
Not sure how cold your water gets in zone 8 - if it drops below 50 degrees F, then it may be just as easy to let the parrot's feather, water lettuce, and fairy moss die off and purchase new plants in the spring. In my opinion, it is more difficult to over-winter them, because conditions have to either simulate your summer climate (hard to recreate indoors without a greenhouse!) or you have to really baby them to keep rot, fungus, etc., at bay.



You shouldn't have to do anything to your primrose creeper or lily, except remove and dead or decaying shoots in the spring. They will overwinter just fine in the pond - if it is shallow, drop the pots to the bottom of the pond where the water temperature will remain more constant, and then when the weather starts to warm, prop them up on the planting shelves, stands, or whatever you are using. The closer the crown of the flowering plants to the water's surface, the sooner they'll bloom....



Hope this helps.
Reply:http://www.water-gardens-information.com...

http://www.gardenline.usask.ca/yards/ove...

http://www.moorewatergardens.com/i_owpla...

here is some reading.right now where i live we have 2 feet of snow and real cold.