Plants That Can Handle The Cold

Sprengeri fern and strawberry begonia are versatile plants that can handle the cold

We all like tough plants. We also like plants that have many uses. Sprengeri fern (Asparagus densiflorus) can make a great houseplant that doesn’t require high amounts of light. It is also useful in floral design. Furthermore, it is a perennial that is hardy in our area.

This plant has a soft feathery appearance highly adaptable to hanging baskets. Its branches trail, so it is also useful in mixed pots. When grown under conditions of relatively high light it will develop tiny white flowers and eventually small red berry-like fruits containing a single seed. Birds often eat these fruits, but they are poisonous to humans.

While delicate looking, this plant has small thorns, so if using it s roping, keep that in mind. Some people are sensitive to them.

Sprengeri fern is not really a fern at all. It is a not edible, but it is a close relative to asparagus. Also, the wispy structures most people would call leaves are not leaves either. They are branchlets called cladophylls. The true leaves are scale-like and inconspicuous.

For those who like to transition their houseplants to the outside in the summer and then back to the inside in the winter, this species works well. If you run out of interior space, sprengeri fern may be planted in the ground in the fall as it is perennial. Outside, it grows from nearly full shade to nearly full sun.

When growing this species strictly as a houseplant, make sure to leave space near the top of the pot for the tuberous roots to spread. After a year or two the roots will spread so much that they can sometimes crack containers if plants are not repotted.

Strawberry begonia is another versatile houseplant that can also be grown as a perennial groundcover. It spreads by above ground creeping stems called stolons, just like strawberries do. Leaves are basically round and coarsely toothed. They usually have a silvery variegation and some degree of hairiness to them.

Strawberry begonia is another misnomer. It is neither a strawberry nor a begonia. They are members of the saxifrage family.

Indoors, they are great in hanging baskets, but they must have adequate but not too much light. An east or west facing window is usually best. South facing windows are fine provided shear curtains protect plants from full sun. Outdoors, strawberry begonias are a great ground cover for shady places. They are also useful in mixed pots as the stems cascade over the sides.

Strawberry begonias produce white star shaped flowers. Under conditions of low light, plants rarely flower. As light levels increase (to a point) flowering becomes showier. Too much direct sun will melt these guys out, so don’t plant them on the south side unless you have some trees or tall shrubs to protect them.