Got Fruit Trees in Pots? This Is the Temperature That Signals It’s Time to Move Them Indoors
Keep an eye on the thermometer and move your tender fruit trees ahead of danger
Having fruit trees in pots offers a wonderful opportunity to grow more tender varieties in any climate. The likes of lemons, limes, oranges, bananas, avocados, olives, and peaches can spend the summer outside, soaking in the warmth, before being brought indoors for winter protection.
An important aspect of overwintering fruit trees in pots is knowing when to bring them indoors. You can use a calendar and have a specific date to always act to protect fruit trees from frost. This can work, but things may change year to year. Another approach is to know the temperatures the plants can withstand and use the weather forecasts.
So, what temperature should require action when overwintering fruit trees in pots? Here are the temperatures that should prompt you to take measures to keep your tender fruit trees safe from harm. A wireless weather station like this one on Amazon can monitor current conditions and provide forecasts for the coming days to help you stay prepared.
When to Move Trees
When you grow fruit trees in pots, there is no shying away from the fact that they cannot tolerate temperatures as low as when planted in the ground. The trees and their roots are more susceptible to cold when in pots, as a container and a thin layer of soil never provide the same insulation as the ground.
Tender fruit trees in containers are highly delicate. Citrus fruits and patio peaches are among the easiest fruit trees to grow in pots on a deck, patio, or balcony, but they are tender plants that need to be overwintered indoors in climates that get winter frosts.
Gardeners must be proactive and move tender fruit trees before the temperatures drop. While some tender fruits, such as citrus trees in pots, can handle brief periods of freezing temperatures, repeated exposure causes real damage.
Other tropical or subtropical fruit trees don’t like being subjected to freezes. You must act before the winter temperatures hit. Don’t wait for the frost; make sure all tender fruit trees are tucked away indoors well before.
A recommended marker is to check the weather forecast for when the temperatures start dropping to 45–50°F (7–10°C) in your climate. When this exactly happens will depend on your location, ranging from late September to November in colder and milder climates. For gardeners in US hardiness zones 7-9, it will be some point in October.
I worked at a garden that had lots of citrus, pomegranate, and olive trees growing in containers. These spent winter in a large historic orangery and came out for public display during the summer. We used to overwinter our citrus trees and other tender plants at the start of October, well in advance of our dropping temperatures in US hardiness zone 8.
‘Night temperatures are what matter, not daytime temps,’ advises Oliver Burgess, an experienced gardener and designer. ‘When nighttime temperatures are consistently dropping to 50°F is when I would move the most tender fruits – such as limes, guava, avocado, and banana.’
So, consider this a call to action: 50°F is the trigger point for overwintering fruit trees in pots to keep your tender trees protected.
Oliver Burgess is the Director of Oliver Burgess Garden Design. He is a qualified garden designer, creating joyful, beautiful, and biodiverse gardens in the South East of England. Oliver designs thoughtful, practical gardens with a focus on small spaces, planting design, and sustainable materials.
How to Move Trees
I have previously used a hand truck to move large planters or pots indoors for winter. You can get a folding hand truck on Amazon if you need a versatile tool for moving pots that folds away so it doesn't take up much storage space in a shed.
Alternatively, you can use a plant caddy. These have wheels to roll a potted fruit tree outside for summer and back indoors for winter, with no need to bend or carry it. You can get a set of two wooden plant caddies at Wayfair that are both strong and elegant.
There are a few important things to do when overwintering fruit trees in pots indoors. This includes thoroughly checking plants for pests before bringing them inside and treating them with insecticidal soap (available at Walmart) if required. You also want to remove dead or diseased foliage with clean, sharp pruners, like these pruning snips at Amazon.
Throughout winter, water a lot less as growth slows (a soil moisture meter, available on Amazon, helps you judge when to water). Plus, if you are caring for a potted lemon tree in winter, or another citrus tree, you should feed it monthly with a specific citrus fertilizer (available at Amazon).
What to Shop
If you don’t have the space to move all your plants indoors for winter, there are ways to protect borderline hardy ones outdoors. This includes moving pots together for winter against a wall or under the eaves, so they benefit from an insulating microclimate, or covering pots with frost cloth and winter covers, such as these pot protection bags on Amazon.
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