Annuals - Abutilon (Flowering Maple)
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 (February) I have an Abutilon plant which seems very healthy and is still blooming, even though it spends most of the time in our dark garage. We take it out on days above 40 degrees. Is this a perennial, or just an annual and we are lucky? Is it hardy enough that we could plant it outside and leave it there in the winter? I have it in a large pot, which is a bit heavy to be moving around. I would bring it in the house, but do not have a lot of light, and it seems to be okay in the garage.

 Abutilon's are also called flowering maples. Most of the cultivars available in our market are considered annuals. There are a few perennials that can be found, but they aren't common here, nor are they always reliable. They can be beautiful plants, treated as tropicals, and kept indoors in the winter. As long as you can prevent them from freezing, they should do fine. Personally, I would not be moving it back and forth--way too much effort. Wait until spring and move it outside for the growing season. If it gets leggy in the garage shear it back.

 I overwintered several pots of wax leaf begonias. They did fine, and bloomed virtually all winter. Now they are way too tall and thin, but still blooming. Is there any way to get them to fill out and still enjoy the flowers?

 I would sacrifice a few blooms now, in the hope of gaining more this summer. Clip off the spent flowers, and prune the plants back by one third to one half (depending on how tall they are). Then replant the part you cut off, by sticking them down into moist soil. Not only will your mother plants begin to fill out, but the tops should root, and you have doubled the number of plants. They should be in bloom before you know it.

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