They always seem to help .. let us know how it goes.. good luck!!

The big hurdle will be the cats.

I kept hope out of the potted plants with one of the garden border fences not sure if that would help with a cat

I use a spray bottle with a long range shot. The cuttings will spend the winter in my livingroom window.

I am a college student studying environmental studies at Texas A&M University and with my most recent move I have lost almost 70% of all of my wonderful Coleus varieties. With the fall season coming around I was hoping there would be some fellow coleus gardeners that would be willing to share some of their cuttings to overwinter.
Let me know if you are interested in sharing
-Matthew

I don't have enough to share as the critters ate most of them.. I may do a NC farms order next spring

I didn't even try to grow them this year. The rabbits just eat them so I had to stop growing them.

Karen

It's been a bad year for wildlife. Must be their usual food is dried up. Deer leave my coleus alone. Wppdchuck and Rabbits must not be able to reach them in big pots.
Disappointing for both of you.

Some pics of my coleus cutting that I'm very proud of I rooted it in water and while the roots were still small I potted it. It's doing great after a month

That looks like w inner.
Some people stick cuttings in potting soil and keep watering to keep te soil moist.

Looking great

Took my 7th cutting from my red coleus plant a couple days ago - leaving it completely bare with only a few leafless stems left. Thought the mother plant might have served its purpose, and ready for the graveyard, but very glad to see that there are numerous spots on the stems where little leaves are already sprouting. Since I'm new at this game, I'm curiously awaiting to see how they develop....that is maybe provide additional cuttings later on. Meantime, I put the latest four cuttings in water until I could find some fresh potting soil and small pots/with/saucers to plant them in. And lo and behold, all four of the cuttings have already produced some nice roots. Surprised that they began rooting so rapidly.

Can't wait until spring to get more coleus plants with variations in coloration for providing cuttings for next year. Also a fellow gardening member has promised me a variety of cuttings this spring which has me quite excited. I haven't planted coleus for a number of years but a church friend gave me a red one last fall which renewed my interest in them. It was a vibrant red when I received it, but with much less indoor lighting this winter (south windows only) it has temporarily been down-graded to mostly pale green with very light red showing leaves - but have great hopes for a return to the vibrant red shade when I move the cuttings outdoors in the spring - around Memorial Day in this neck of the woods. Not sure whether they should be planted in full sun, shade or dappled shade - all of which are available on our large patio. Suggestions, fellow gardeners? Plan to plant most of them in containers so that I can move them around to the best spot or spots that seem to work the best. Our summers are warm, not hot, with fair amounts of rain.

Anxious to hear from other coleus growers to learn about their experiences and their plans for spring plantings.

So far I have taken and planted many pots of coleus cuttings for you along with a pot of plectranthus. I use a north window for their first two weeks and gradually move them to sun in a south window.

As for planting them outside - Memorial Day is good since any threats of frost should be past. Introduce them to sun over a week - a bit more sun each day after a few days of shade, then semi-shade.

Most important is to not overwater.

Have fun!

My NGA dahlia buddy said he used to go fishing near you...small world.

Nice hearing from you again, Arlene. Hope you're having a 'not so bad' winter. Ours so far has been much milder than usual - several light snowfalls, but nothing major. Only about another month to go until we begin to get some semi-spring days - can't wait.

As to fishing spots nearby - we have a lot of lakes in the vicinity - Conneaut Lake, to name the closest one. And a lot of streams that attract a lot of fisherman. Did your friend ever say exactly where he fished in my area? Just curious.

Yes, this is a small world. My wife and I lived in Connecticut for a few years and met a couple at a swimming pool who approached us because of my accent. Found out her husband was born and raised in a small community about 5 miles from our home town. She says my accent was the same as her husband's - first time I ever knew that I had an accent. I thought the residents, or some of them, in Connecticut had accents. I am aware that I use a lot of words common from the Pittsburgh area where my mother was raised - many people have noticed that and told me. And while living in Charlotte, NC (for 20 years) met a couple who recognized our accents and found out they were also originally from our hometown area.

Having a nice sunny day - cold but bright sunshine - makes for a nice winter day. My wife has been chair-bound most of the day for the past year or so (although mobile with a walker for short periods of time) , so I've been in charge of the kitchen - trying to think of something a little different to prepare for the evening meal. Unfortunately my culinary skills are not too well perfected and my list of recipes quite limited - but we're not starving and my wife is not complaining - so that's on the plus side. At our youngest daughter's suggestion, I have been doing a little experimenting with a crockpot lately and so far with pretty good results with a beef pot roast with potatoes, carrots and onions. Have to find a crockpot recipe cookbook to give me some more good ideas. I like the idea of casseroles and the like - too many pots/pans on the stove or oven at the same time makes me quite nervous - and my timing at trying to have everything ready at the same times leaves a lot to be desired. But I'm learning, slowly but surely.


Fortunately I'm a little better at gardening than I am at home-making - at least have had many more years of experience. Who says that ' an old dog can't learn new tricks?'

Take care and will be keeping in touch.

Don

Winter hasn't been awful. Barely any snow and that's good.

The Crock pot/slow cooker can be your best friend. Google "chicken slow cooker" (or beef or pork) and you'll get more recipes than you can believe.

I asked my buddy about fishing and this is his response:

I've probably fished everywhere around there except Conneaut Lake. I've fished Pymatuning Lake, Woodcock Creek and Lake, Oil Creek, French Creek, Sugar Creek and many others. I've spent enough time around there to almost qualify as a resident. LOL

Wow! Thanks, Arlene, for the suggestion. I googled slow-cooker recipes for beef, pork and chicken and added them to my Favorites for easy access. Will need to go to grocery store to stock up on some meat and soup mixes. Always have a supply of onions on hand as I use them in nearly everything I cook. My wife doesn't like mushrooms, although they're one of my favorites, so will have to think of something to replace them. (Might sneak in a can of mushroom soup along with cream of chicken soup - and hopefully she won't be able to notice). Although most of the recipes didn't call for potatoes I think I'll add some quartered ones so I don't have to worry about cooking potatoes, rice, etc separately. If that doesn't turn out okay, will go with mashed potatoes the next time.

Will be busy next couple of days but by Thursday or Friday I'll be making my first stab at one of the recipes. Thanks again. No need to buy a slow cooker cookbook now. Will let you know how I make out.

Which plectranthus do you have Arlene?.. I have one that I believe the name is Troy's gold .. will double check.. didn't take cuttings but it's doing well inside

Don glad your cuttings sound like they are doing well.. putting them outside in spring.. have to just shelter them a bit from the sun and move them more and more into each day .. they will usually get big and healthy in no time

Edit yes it is Troy's gold - Plectranthus (Plectranthus ciliatus 'Troy's Gold')

Glad it worked out for you, Don. Just using Google for "slow cooker recipes" will open a world of possibilities. You could always saute some mushrooms and add them to your own dinner.

Allison - I had that one but must have lost it years ago. It's such a nice family of plants. This is the one I have:

Yes that is a nice one too .. good for you!!