The oleander, also known as 'rose laurel', is a typical Mediterranean plant that delights us with its beautiful flowers during the summer months. However, the plant is not necessarily easy to cultivate in our latitudes, because oleander is not hardy.
Oleander should be brought indoors before the first frost
Oleander is only conditionally hardy
The flowering shrub is only conditionally hardy, i. H. it tolerates a maximum (and only for a short time) of minus five degrees Celsius at most. However, even this low temperature can cause the oleander to freeze to death - a single night with slightly frosty temperatures is enough. For this reason, the plant should hibernate under cold house conditions if possible, i.e. cool (but frost-free) at around five degrees Celsius and bright. If necessary, the shrub can survive the winter with little or even no light - for example in the basement or in a garage.
Packing up for winter is not enough
Unfortunately, simply packing oleanders for the winter and leaving them outside is not enough. You might be successful with this strategy in mild winters, but a single frosty night will undo all efforts. Therefore, always keep an eye on the weather forecast and, if in doubt, move the oleander to its winter quarters. Until then, however, he can stay outdoors, wrapped up as warmly as possible. Place the pot on a thick styrofoam or wooden base and wrap it with bubble wrap. Pack the bush itself in gardener's fleece. Alternatively, sink the pot into the ground and pile up the oleander like a rose.
Put in late, clear out early
In principle, oleanders should be cleared into winter quarters as late as possible and taken outside again as early as possible. In this way, the crop survives the winter better, because most plants look quite worn out after the winter break and take a while to recover. A pruning is then often unavoidable, which can be problematic with oleanders in terms of flowering - after all, the shrub mainly flowers on two-year-old shoots.
tips
Prune oleanders preferably in the spring to eliminate winter damage. If necessary, the shrub can also be cut back before it is put into winter quarters.