What should I do with my rosemary?

[sally_cinnamon]

Hello all,
I have a sprig of rosemary that I brought back from France and I have it on the windowsill happily sprouting roots.  What I want to do with it is plant it outside my front door but wondered whether it would survive the winter if I did it now?  Or should I pot it up and keep it indoors?  Never grown rosemary before so not sure of it's growing instructions!
Thanks! ;D

[sally_cinnamon]

[tim]

Have ours in a trough near the house, & it goes through Cotswold winters. In Lancashire you should be OK? But a really severe frost will kill it.

[grawrc]

My rosemary bush is at our front door (south facing) and has survived more than 10 Scottish winters.

[sally_cinnamon]

Great!  In that case I will put it in a big pot outside with the back up plan of being able to bring it in in case of bad frosts!  I'm sooo looking forward to brushing past it and getting that wonderful smell when I go in and out.
Thanks peeps!
;D

[manicscousers]

you can always throw a bit of fleece over it if we do get a bad frost

[wellingtons]

Rosemary is perfectly hardy but if you're really in love with your lil plant I'd definitely put it in a pot so you can bring it in.  Once established you shouldn't need to worry at all.

[froglets]

Mine did really well in the lee of the last house.  The gutters etc kept the bulk of the rain off it and the builders rubble and foundations kept it's roots sharply drained, just enough warmth from the bricks and a fab show of flowers every year.

[tim]

No argument - just a quote -

"Rosemary tolerates moderate frosts down to about 15°F but are a not a good plant for cool wet locations prefering mild and warmer climates in a sunny location in well drained soils."

[sweet-pea]

How did you root your rosemary sprig. I have tried on a couple of occassions without success and would love to find out a method that works.

Thanks
SP

[greyhound]

It will not tolerate being waterlogged.  I had some outside the door once - guttering sprang a leak and the rosemary died almost instantly.  :o

[Kea]

My rosemary bush is at our front door (south facing) and has survived more than 10 Scottish winters.

Lucky you! when i lived in Scotland I had to grow it as an annual......however I see why now it's altitude that's the difference. Higher up in Penicuik!

[grawrc]

Yes!! Penicuik and Balerno are above the snow line! Actually I think we have a micro climate in the front garden. I've even overwintered pots of geraniums outside.

[sally_cinnamon]

How did you root your rosemary sprig. I have tried on a couple of occassions without success and would love to find out a method that works.

Thanks
SP

sweet-pea... I just pulled some sprigs from the plant and put them in a glass of water covering about three inches from the bottom and just topped it up when it got sucked up.  Within about a week there were roots sprouting - I'll try to take a pic to show you tonight...

I hadn't thought about waterlogging, it does tend to get quite wet where I was going to put it - maybe I'll split it and plant some out and save some in a pot too, just in case!
:P

[saddad]

I wouldn't even plant it out if it is a soggy site, I have lost three in quick succession on our heavy clay, even one in a rasied bed!
:-[

[manicscousers]

I've got some in a pot in the back garden, had it for 6 years, took cuttings off, planted them in pots on the allotment, I use a very open planting mix, sand etc mixed in and put them up against a wall or at the end of the poly, don't know if it's the protection bu they're o.k

[weedin project]

Yes!! Penicuik and Balerno are above the snow line! Actually I think we have a micro climate in the front garden. I've even overwintered pots of geraniums outside.

Oi!, my dad's from Penicuik, and I remember my dear old granny's garden having wonderful lush aromatic herbs as well as stuff like rhubarb, goosegogs, rasps, spuds, etc.. 

>:( Above the snow line indeed. >:(

All Penicuik gardens must have microclimates!

;) The McWeedin of that Ilk  8)

[grawrc]

Well I never! Lived in Balerno. Worked in Leith. Arrived late for work in winter because of the snow and my colleagues said: "What snow?" ... except for the ones from Penicuik who were also "above the snow line".
:P

Went shopping in Princes Street and everyone was dressed in t shirts except for me and a few others: we had warm jackets on. Guess what? They came from Penicuik.

BTW it's a fact - I didn't invent it. Balerno and Penicuik are above the snow line and consequently get considerably more snow than nearby areas that are lower down..

We also had lush herbs and rhubarb and rasps etc etc in Balerno , but on winter mornings all the guys in the street were out at 7.00am  to manhandle the "street" cars up to the main road cos if they didn't noone was getting to work. Meanwhile it was raining in Edinburgh.

Funnily enough I could never get rosemary to grow successfully in Balerno, but I always put it down to the heavy clay soil. ;) ;)

[weedin project]

grawrc
The soil may well be the problem.  My dad tells tales of being sent out to follow the milk/coal/whatever cart and pick up the horsey droppings, which granny used on the garden.  Child labour  :'( still I suppose he was lucky he was too big to fit up the chimneys. :D
I don't know if they had clay soil or not - my memory is from about 50 years ago, but it always seemed to be sunny when I visited them!  I know the Pentlands that seemed to loom over the back garden are very peaty, and the spuds from there are -  Javelins etc. - world famous.

Anyway, now I'm in Waterlooville and it's clay on top of chalk.  So, must be time to send Mrs Project out to follow the horses & carts! ;D

[sally_cinnamon]

How did you root your rosemary sprig.

I'll try to take a pic to show you tonight...

Here's the pic of the rosemary sprig sprouting...



Sorry it's sideways!

[Kea]

Yes!! Penicuik and Balerno are above the snow line! Actually I think we have a micro climate in the front garden. I've even overwintered pots of geraniums outside.

Oi!, my dad's from Penicuik, and I remember my dear old granny's garden having wonderful lush aromatic herbs as well as stuff like rhubarb, goosegogs, rasps, spuds, etc.. 

>:( Above the snow line indeed. >:(

All Penicuik gardens must have microclimates!

;) The McWeedin of that Ilk  8)

There are two parts to Penicuik: Up the hill and down the hill. I lived right up the top of the hill we got snow when Penicuik down below didn't and it was frequent. Edinburgh is much warmer, I used to walk around Edinburgh and gaze at the lovely gardens in wonder! The growing season was about 2 months where I lived.
Grawrc is correct, I used to roast when I went shopping in Edinburgh in all my layers, I'd get into a shop and be blasted by all the heating and have to leave or strip off some layers!
Also if the Tomintoul road was closed we got snow.

I had a huge but very out of shape Rosemary bush (tree) in my front garden when i moved in (Cambridgeshire now!). My neighbour kept going on about how horrible it looked, so i decided to replace it with a nicer variety. The summer drought killed it and I wished I'd just taken cuttings of the old one. The ones i have now are in pots but i'm going to plant one of them at my allotment....I have to have Rosemary it's my middle name.
It does like good drainage....which is why I haven't planted another in my garden which is heavy clay.