Growing tropical plants in cold climates gives you a wonderful summer garden and a very practical question when fall arrives: what are you going to do with all those plants? Here in Indiana, the large leaves, unusual flowers and quick summer growth are part of what draws me to tropical gardening. A canna can make a border feel lush, a sweet potato vine can spill over a container, and a Brugmansia in bloom can stop you in your tracks. I don't want our winter weather to be the reason I never enjoy them.
However, enjoying tropical plants doesn't mean every one of them has to spend winter beside a window. Some are worth keeping as growing plants, some can rest as rhizomes or tubers, and others make more sense to start again from seed. There is also a useful middle ground: keep a small cutting instead of finding room for the entire summer plant. The trick is matching the plant to the space and care you can actually provide, so that saving it feels like part of gardening rather than a house full of struggling pots.
Choose a Winter Plan Before the Weather Makes the Decision
I would start with the plants you most want to see again next summer. A favorite flower color, an unusual leaf pattern or a plant that took years to reach a good size deserves a different decision from something inexpensive and easy to replace. Think about what you are preserving, too. Seed can give you another plant, but it may not reproduce the exact characteristics of a named cultivar. Keeping that plant, its divisions or suitable cuttings is often the better choice when a particular variety matters to you.
Next, look at your winter space honestly. A bright window, a shelf with a grow light and a cool storage area can each serve a purpose, but they are not interchangeable. An actively growing tropical needs light and ongoing care; a dormant canna rhizome does not need a sunny windowsill. Conversely, putting a leafy parrot impatiens into a dark basement won't give it the same useful rest that a suitable storage organ can take. Knowing the plant's botanical name helps you find the right method instead of relying on a broad label such as “tropical” or “elephant ear.”
Temperature is another part of that decision. An unheated garage may be convenient in October and freezing in January. Put a thermometer where the plants or stored roots will actually sit, and use one that records minimum temperatures if possible. If you cannot provide the conditions a plant needs, choosing to replace it next season is reasonable. I would rather make that choice while the plant is healthy than discover in spring that the storage place was never suitable.
Bring Growing Plants Indoors Before Cold Damage Begins
For plants you intend to keep leafy, begin the move before frost forces you into a hurried rescue. Many tropical plants dislike chilly nights even when the temperature remains above freezing, so use the needs of the particular species along with the forecast. Start by preparing its indoor location. Clean the window, make room for the container and decide whether the available light is enough. A spot that looks bright to us across a room may offer very little useful light to a plant.
Before bringing a plant near your existing collection, look underneath the leaves, along the stems and around the pot rim. Check for insects, webbing, sticky deposits and damaged growth. Remove fallen leaves and debris, and inspect the container for unwanted passengers. If treatment is needed, use a product labeled for that plant and setting, and follow its directions rather than assuming a stronger mixture will work better. Keep incoming plants apart from established houseplants while you watch for problems; a plant that looked clean on moving day may reveal something a week later.
Watering also changes when a plant moves indoors. Less light and slower growth can mean that the potting mix stays wet longer, even when the room air feels dry. Check the mix and the weight of the pot before watering, allow excess water to drain, and keep the container away from heating vents and cold drafts. Some leaf loss can accompany the change, but it is a reason to check the conditions, not automatically a reason to add water or fertilizer. My Houseplants & Indoor Tropicals growing center is a useful next stop when you want to work through indoor care in more detail.
Parrot Impatiens: Keep the Plant You Already Love
The parrot impatiens pictured above, Impatiens niamniamensis, is a lovely example of why I hesitate to call every summer container plant an annual. Those colorful, bird-shaped flowers belong to a tropical plant that can continue growing indoors. Its name may make you think of the familiar impatiens planted out each spring, but that doesn't mean you need to discard this one at the end of the season.
This is a plant for sheltered, shaded outdoor conditions and a suitably bright indoor position. Shade tolerance does not mean it will be happy in the darkest corner of the house. Give it light without suddenly exposing it to harsh sun, maintain moisture without leaving the pot standing in water, and watch how the plant responds as indoor conditions change. I would make room for a healthy specimen whose flowers I enjoy rather than assume starting from seed is the simplest route.
If space is limited, softwood cuttings offer another way to keep it. The Royal Horticultural Society's parrot plant profile lists both seed and cuttings as propagation options. Taking suitable cuttings while the parent is still growing gives you time to establish a smaller plant before the move indoors. That is a much better starting point than waiting until cold weather has damaged the stems.
Castor Beans: When Starting Again From Seed Makes Sense
Ricinus communis, commonly called castor bean, earns its place in a tropical-looking garden through dramatic foliage and fast warm-season growth. The reddish stems, large leaves and spiny seed capsules can make a border look established surprisingly quickly. It is useful where you want height and a bold backdrop, although the eventual size depends on the variety and growing conditions. Give it room, suitable sun and protection from situations where a tall plant could become a problem.
I have grown castor bean indoors, but this is one I would rather start from seed each spring. Finding winter room for a large specimen can mean giving up space that would be more useful for a tropical plant that is difficult to replace. If you choose the seed route, follow the packet's sowing directions and work backward from your local planting weather. Don't assume every plant will reach its maximum size or ripen seed before frost just because another gardener's season was long enough.
The important limitation here is toxicity. North Carolina Extension identifies castor bean as highly poisonous, with the seeds presenting a serious concern. Keep the plant and any saved seed away from children and animals, wear gloves when handling it, and label stored seed clearly. Where access cannot be controlled, choose another foliage plant. A dramatic garden is not worth putting a dangerous plant where someone can easily reach it.
Cannas: Save the Rhizomes and Leave the Big Leaves Behind
Cannas give you both flowers and substantial foliage, which is why they work so well in a summer tropical border. They can also take up an impressive amount of indoor space. Although a canna can continue growing with adequate light, my preference for an ordinary cold-climate garden would usually be to save its rhizomes. You keep the plant's next season without having to maintain all that foliage through the darkest part of the year.
When frost has killed the top growth, lift the clump before the ground freezes. Work far enough from the stems to avoid cutting through the rhizomes, remove the dead foliage and excess soil, and let the clump dry in a protected place. Label it while you still remember the flower and leaf colors. A box full of unnamed rhizomes is easy to create in a busy autumn, but it is much less useful when you are trying to plan the following year's border.
For dormant cannas, a cool storage area around 40 to 50°F is a useful target. Keep the rhizomes protected from freezing and inspect them during winter rather than sealing them away and forgetting them. If you want an earlier start, pot healthy canna rhizomes indoors in spring when you can provide warmth and good light. March may suit some setups, but it is not a deadline: starting too early without enough light simply gives you growth you cannot yet accommodate outdoors.
Brugmansia: Keep a Mature Plant or Make Room for Cuttings
Brugmansia is one of those plants that makes the work of overwintering feel worthwhile. The hanging trumpet flowers have such a presence in the garden, and keeping an established plant lets you begin the next season with more than a small seedling. Seed is still an interesting option, especially if you enjoy seeing what develops, but it is not the same as preserving a favorite named plant. My Brugmansia article and Brugmansia seed-starting guide explore those choices further.
There are two winter approaches to consider. With enough light and suitable warmth, you can keep the plant growing. If that is more space and care than you can provide, an established plant can be allowed to rest in a cool, frost-free, dim location. Check its pot periodically and give only enough water to prevent excessive drying; leafless storage is not a reason to keep the root ball saturated. Prune as needed to fit the plant into its winter space, rather than cutting simply because the season has changed.
Suitable stem cuttings are another practical compromise. You can preserve a plant in a much smaller pot, but rooted cuttings still need the conditions of living plants; they are not dry bulbs to put in a box. The Wisconsin Extension Brugmansia guide explains both dormant storage and propagation. Remember that Brugmansia is poisonous and must be kept away from children and pets. Its strong evening fragrance can also be overwhelming in a small indoor space, so think about where a flowering plant will stand before moving it into a room you use regularly.
Elephant Ears: Identify the Plant Before Choosing Storage
Those enormous leaves are often the first thing people notice in a tropical garden. Colocasia can give a container or border a completely different scale, and some varieties offer striking dark or patterned foliage. I generally prefer saving the underground storage structures rather than finding winter space for the entire leafy plant. However, “elephant ear” is a common name used for several kinds of plants, and that matters when you decide how to overwinter one.
Some form a substantial corm or other storage structure that can be lifted and kept dormant. Others are better maintained as houseplants. Before cutting off all the foliage and putting the roots away, check the botanical name and whether your particular plant has something suitable to store. If you are keeping it growing, provide appropriate warmth and light and adjust watering to the indoor conditions. Don't assume the wet summer conditions tolerated by one Colocasia are right for every plant sold under the elephant-ear name.
For suitable dormant elephant ears, Iowa State Extension gives a storage range of about 55 to 60°F, warmer than its recommendation for cannas. That difference is a good reason to label containers with both the plant's name and its winter requirements. A single cold shelf may suit one box and harm another. If you are saving the plant for its foliage, keep the cultivar name as well; different leaf colors and patterns may have different light preferences when growth resumes.
Sweet Potato Vines: Small Cuttings Can Be Easier Than Large Roots
Ornamental sweet potato vines, Ipomoea batatas, are wonderful for trailing over containers and spreading across a bed. Their chartreuse or dark foliage can pull a planting together, and the pale flowers against dark leaves in this photograph are lovely in their own right. If you have a combination you particularly like, it is worth thinking about how to preserve that vine before chilly weather damages it.
You can keep a healthy plant growing indoors, or take suitable cuttings and grow a smaller replacement in good light. Cuttings are especially appealing when a summer container has become a tangled, sprawling arrangement that would be awkward to move into the house. Choose healthy growth while it is available, use clean tools and remove leaves from the portion that will sit in the rooting medium or water. Once roots develop, establish the cutting in a manageable pot instead of expecting it to stay an attractive winter plant in a crowded jar indefinitely.
Saving the fleshy roots is another possibility, but it is not guaranteed to be the easiest choice. A container-grown ornamental vine may have produced only small roots that dry out in storage. Illinois Extension describes that difficulty and an indoor-growing alternative. Examine what your plant actually produced before deciding to store it like a canna. Keeping a small living vine may be the more dependable way to preserve a favorite foliage color.
Caladiums and Tuberous Begonias Need Their Own Winter Conditions
Caladiums and tuberous begonias can both reward you with beautiful summer displays, but their winter care should not be lumped into one cold-storage instruction. Caladiums are grown for their patterned leaves, while tuberous begonias offer flowers in sheltered, bright shade. When their foliage begins declining in fall, it is tempting to treat that as a failed plant. In the right circumstances, however, it is the beginning of the dormant period that lets you save the underground part for another season.
Lift and cure the storage organs according to the plant rather than putting freshly dug, wet material straight into a closed container. For caladiums, Iowa State recommends a warmer storage range of about 60 to 65°F. Tuberous begonias are stored cooler, around 40 to 50°F. The small caladium storage organs deserve particular attention because they can dry out easily. Label each group and keep it where you can check its condition without having to unpack everything else.
This advice is for tuberous begonias, not every begonia you might have in a pot. A cane begonia or another type without a suitable dormant tuber needs a different plan. Likewise, a plant that is still actively growing needs care appropriate to its leaves and roots; you should not stop watering it simply because the calendar says winter. The aim is to work with the plant's growth cycle and keep the stored material firm and sound until you can restart it.
Butterfly Pea: Choose Between a Living Vine and Next Year's Seedlings
Butterfly pea, Clitoria ternatea, gives a tropical planting another texture with its pea-like flowers and trailing or climbing growth. Blue is the familiar color, but white-flowered and double forms are available too. It can be grown as a warm-season annual in a cold climate, which makes starting fresh plants a reasonable option when your indoor growing space is already full.
Keeping a healthy vine indoors is also possible if you can give it enough light and a manageable support. The advantage is having an established plant to work with when warm weather returns. However, I wouldn't promise winter flowers simply because you brought the pot inside. Short days, indoor light and the condition of the plant all affect what happens next. Trim and guide the growth so that it fits the space, and watch for pests rather than letting a sprawling vine disappear behind other houseplants.
If you choose to start butterfly pea from seed, check the packet for germination treatment and timing. Give the seedlings warmth and suitable light, then plan their move outdoors around settled weather. Saving or buying seed is useful only if you allow enough growing time to enjoy the flowers you wanted in the first place.
Make Dormant Storage a Winter Routine, Not a Sealed Box
A stored rhizome or tuber is still alive. It may not need a windowsill, but it does need occasional attention. Use a container that allows appropriate air exchange, keep plant groups labeled and separate, and avoid packing freshly wet material into an airtight plastic tub. The balance you are looking for is sound, resting material that is neither rotting in trapped moisture nor shriveling from excessive drying.
Check stored plants regularly, including during unusually cold weather or changes in basement conditions. Look for softness, spreading mold, unpleasant odors and severe shriveling. Separate failing material from healthy pieces and reassess the packing conditions. Very damp material may need to dry and be repacked; overly dry material may need a little moisture in its surrounding medium. That is different from pouring water over every box on the first of each month.
I would keep a short note with each group: its name, the date it went into storage and the conditions it needs. Record any problem you find so you can compare the outcome next spring. The Wisconsin Extension storage guide is helpful for understanding curing, ventilation and winter inspection, while Iowa State's plant-by-plant recommendations explain why storage temperatures differ.
Restart Gently and Give the Plants Time to Adjust Outdoors
Spring is when the winter plan begins paying you back, but it is also a time to resist rushing. Bring suitable dormant plants into warmer conditions when you have somewhere for their new growth to go. Inspect the roots or rhizomes before potting, use containers with drainage and begin watering according to the plant's stage of growth. A pot holding a dormant storage organ does not use water at the same rate as a leafy, actively growing plant.
Plants that spent winter indoors need a gradual return to outdoor life. Begin with a sheltered position and work toward the light and exposure they need, rather than putting soft indoor leaves straight into strong sun and wind. Keep watching nighttime temperatures. The average last-frost date is a planning tool, not a promise that the next week will suit every tropical plant in your collection.
Growing tropical plants in a cold climate has always been about making choices, and I don't think those choices have to take the pleasure out of it. Keep the plants that matter to you, save the parts that store well and give yourself permission to start over where that makes sense. For more ideas, explore my Winter Gardening growing center or return to the indoor tropical collection. Which plant are you determined to keep this winter, and what kind of space do you have for it? That is where I would begin building your own plan.
Learn More About Growing Tropical Plants
If you enjoy growing tropical plants but need practical ways to manage limited space, containers and cold winters, I have two courses that take you further into the subject. Both are available through my Experimental Homesteader shop.
Growing Tropical Plants explores growing tropical plants and is a useful next step when you want to learn more about caring for these unusual plants.
Edible and Tropical Plants in Pots - Recorded Live is a recorded presentation focused on growing edible and tropical plants in containers, an especially useful approach when your outdoor growing season is short.
Take a look at either course to see which best fits what you want to grow.
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