Which Annuals Can You Save From the Cold?

By Larry Hodgson

Gardeners in temperate climates have a long history of saving certain “annuals” by bringing the plants or cuttings of the plants indoors in the fall to protect them the cold of the winter. 

I mean, would we even be growing pelargoniums and fuchsias if that weren’t possible? 

But you can’t “save” just any annual. Some simply die at the end of the season. You can collect seeds and sow new ones in the spring, but little comes from bringing in French marigolds, cosmos or bachelor’s buttons. 

Why is that? 

True Annuals and False Annuals

True annuals go through their entire growth cycle in a single year, from seed to leaves to bloom to fresh seed … then they die. There’s not much you can do to save them: it’s just not in their nature. So, you can’t overwinter true annuals, indoors or out.

However, most of the plants we grow as annuals these days aren’t true annuals. They’re tender perennials, tropical or subtropical herbaceous plants (some are even tender shrubs!) offered by plant nurseries as annuals because they’ll be killed by frost. Tender, in this case, means not resistant to frost. You may also have heard them called temperennials. although the term is probably not in any dictionary. Therefore, these plants are only expected to bloom for one season in areas were frost reigns.

These are the ones you can bring indoors and keep from year to year. 

Of course, the merchant who sells these plants as annuals would really prefer that you treat tender perennials like annuals and let them die with the first hard frost. That way you’ll buy new plants the following spring and they’ll make more money. But gardeners tend to be a frugal lot, plus we love experimenting with plants. Learning to overwinter these false annuals can be a real pleasure!

Here are lists of both types: the true annuals you can just let die their normal death and the false ones, tender perennials, that you can save. 

True Annuals

These plants will simply die when they’ve finished producing seeds. There’s no use trying to save them from the cold.

1. Amaranth (Amaranthus spp.)
2. Amaranth, globe (Gomphrena globosa)
3. Annual gypsophila (Gypsophila elegans)
4. Apple of Peru (Nicandra physalodes)
5. Baby blue eyes (Nemophila menziesii)
6. Bachelor’s buttons (Centaurea cyanea)
7. Balsam, garden (Impatiens balsamina)
8. Balsam, Himalayan (Impatiens glandulifera)
9. Bells of Ireland (Molucella laevis)
10. Black-eyed susan* (Rudbeckia hirta)
11. Blue tansy (Phacelia tanacetifolia)
12. Burning bush (Bassia scoparia, syn. Kochia scoparia)
13. Calendula (Calendula officinalis)
14. California bluebell (Phacelia campanularia)
15. Calliopsis (Coreopsis tinctoria)
16. Candytuft, globe or common (Iberis umbellata)
17. Candytuft, rocket (Iberis amara)
18. Cardinal climber (Ipomoea quamoclit, I. coccinea, I. × multifida)
19. China aster (Callistephus chinensis)
20. Chinese forget-me-not (Cynoglossum amabile)
21. Chrysanthemum, annual (Ismelia carinata, syn. Chrysanthemum carinatum)
22. Chrysanthemum, garland (Glebionis segetum, syn. Chrysanthemum segetum)
23. Clarkia (Clarkia spp.)
24. Cleome (Cleome hassleriana)
25. Corn cockle (Agrostemma githago)
26. Cornflower (Centaurea cyanea)
27. Cosmos, garden (Cosmos bipinnatus)
28. Cosmos, sulfur (Cosmos sulphureus)
29. Cushion baby’s breath (Psammopyiliella muralis, syn. Gypsophila muralis)
30. Daisy, Livingstone (Cleretum bellidiforme, syn. Dororeanthus bellidiformis)
31. Daisy, Swan River (Brachyscome iberidifolia)
32. Everlasting (Xerochrysum bracteatum, syn. Helichrysum bracteatum)
33. Farewell to spring (Clarkia spp.)
34. Fivespot (Nemophila maculata)
35. Flossflower (Ageratum houstonianum)
36. Godetia (Clarkia amoena)
37. Indian blanket (Gaillardia pulchella)
38. Jimsonweed (Datura stramonium)
39. Joseph’s coat (Amaranthus tricolor)
40. Kiss-me-over-the-garden-gate (Persicaria orientalis)
41. Lacy phacelia (Phacelia tanacetifolia)
42. Larkspur (Consolida spp.)
43. Lavatera (Malva trimestris, syn. Lavatera trimestris)
44. Love-in-a-mist (Nigella damascena)
45. Love-lies-bleeding (Amaranthus caudatus)
46. Marigold, African (Tagetes erecta)
47. Marigold, French (Tagetes patula)
48. Mexican sunflower* (Tithonia spp.)
49. Mignonette (Reseda odorata)
50. Monarch-of-the-veld (Arctotis fastuosa)
51. Morning bride (Scabiosa atropurpurea)
52. Morning glory (Ipomoea nil)
53. Morning glory, bush (Convolvulus tricolor)
54. Moss rose (Portulaca grandiflora)
55. Nemesia (Nemesia strumosa)
56. Oriental woodruff (Asperula orientalis)
57. Ornamental gourd (Lagenaria siceraria)
58. Perilla (Perilla frutescens)
59. Phlox, annual (Phlox drummondii)
60. Plains coreopsis (Coreopsis tinctoria)
61. Poor man’s orchid (Schizanthus spp.)
62. Poppy, California (Eschscholzia californica)
63. Poppy, corn (Papaver rhoeas)
64. Poppy, opium (Papaver somniferum)
65. Poppy, Shirley (Papaver rhoeas)
66. Portulaca (Portulaca grandiflora)
67. Princess feather (Persicaria orientalis)
68. Rose mallow (Malva trimestris, syn. Lavatera trimestris)
69. Sage, clary (Salvia viridis, syn. S. horminum)
70. Scarlet flax (Linum grandiflorum)
71. Snow-on-the-mountain (Euphorbia marginata)
72. Spider flower (Cleome hassleriana)
73. Stock, night-scented (Matthiola longipetala)
74. Stock, Virginia (Malcolmia maritima)
75. Sunflower (Helianthus annuus)
76. Sweet alyssum (Lobularia maritima)
77. Sweet pea (Lathyrus odoratus)
78. Sweet scabious (Scabiosa atropurpurea)
79. Tassel flower (Amaranthus caudatus)
80. Texas Bluebonnet (Lupinus texensis)
81. Thorn apple (Datura stramonium)
82. Toadflax, Moroccan (Linaria maroccana)
83. Toadflax, netted (Linaria reticulata)
84. Wishbone flower (Torenia fournieri)
85. Zinnia (Zinnia elegans)
86. Zinnia, creeping (Sanvitalia procumbens)

*Most clones are annual, but a few are perennial.

False Annuals (Tender Annuals)

These plants are sold as annuals, but can live more than one year in a mild climate (some are hardy to zone 8, but most require near tropical conditions to grow year round outdoors). To keep them going in colder climates, you’ll need to either bring them into your home or a heated greenhouse for the winter.

1. Achimenes (Achimenes spp.)
2. Agastache (Agastache aurantiaca)
3. Ageratum (Ageratum houstonianum)
4. Alternanthera (Alternanthera spp.)
5. Allamanda (Allamanda spp.)
6. Angel wings (Senecio candicans ‘Senaw’)
7. Angelonia (Angelonia spp.)
8. Asparagus fern (Asparagus spp.)
9. Australian violet (Viola hederacea)
10. Baby sun rose (Mesembryanthemum cordifolium, syn. Aptenia cordifolia)
11. Bacopa (Sutera cordata)
12. Banana (Musa spp. & Ensete spp.)
13. Basil, common (Ocimum basilicum)
14. Bean, hyacinth (Lablab purpureus, syn. Dolichos lablab)
15. Bean, scarlet runner (Phaseolus coccineus)
16. Beggarticks (Bidens ferulifolia and others)
17. Begonia (Begonia spp.)
18. Black-eyed susan vine (Thunbergia alata)
19. Blood leaf (Iresine herbstii)
20. Bloodflower (Asclepias curassavica)
21. Blue daze (Evolvulus glomeratus)
22. Blue pimpernel (Lysimachia monellii, syn. Anagallis monellii)
23. Blue star (Isotoma axillaris, syn. Laurentia axillaris)
24. Bougainvillea (Bougainvillea spp.)
25. Browallia or bush violet (Browallia speciosa)
26. Brugmansia (Brugmansia spp.)
27. Cabbage tree (Cordyline australis)
28. Caladium (Caladium bicolor)
29. Calibrachoa (Calibrachoa spp.)
30. Canna (Canna spp.)
31. Cape marguerite (Dimorphoteca ecklonis, syn. Osteospermum ecklonis)
32. Carnation (Dianthus caryophyllus)
33. Castor bean (Ricinus communis)
34. Cathedral vine (Cobaea scandens)
35. Celosia (Celosia argentea)
36. Cherry pie (Heliotropium arborescens)
37. Chicken gizzard plant (Iresine herbstii)
38. Chinese hibiscus (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis)
39. Chinese pink (Dianthus chinensis)
40. Chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum × morifolium)
41. Cigar flower (Cuphea spp.)
42. Clerodendron (Clerodendrum spp.)
43. Cockscomb (Celosia argentea)
44. Coleus (Coleus scutellarioides)
45. Copperleaf (Acalypha spp.)
46. Cordyline (Cordyline australis)
47. Cranberry hibiscus (Hibiscus acetosella)
48. Creeping gloxinia (Lophospermum erubescens, syn. Asarina erubescens)
49. Cup-and-saucer vine (Cobaea scandens)
50. Cuphea (Cuphea spp.)
51. Dahlia (Dahlia ×)
52. Daisy, blue (Felicia amelloides)
53. Daisy, Paris (Argyranthemum frutescens)
54. Daisy, Transvaal (Gerbera jamesonii)
55. Datura (Datura metel and D. innoxia)
56. Diascia (Diascia spp.)
57. Digiplexus (Digitalis ×, syn. × Digiplexus)
58. Dipladenia (Mandevilla spp.)
59. Drumstick (Craspedia spp.)
60. Dusty miller (Jacobaea maritima, syn. Senecio cineraria)
61. Edging lobelia (Lobelia erinus)
62. Egyptian starcluster (Pentas lanceolata)
63. Elephant ear (Colocasia spp., Alocasia spp. & Caladium bicolor)
64. Everlasting, winged (Ammobium alatum)
65. Fall mum (Chrysanthemum × morifolium)
66. Fan flower (Scaevola aemula)
67. Feathered amaranth (Celosia argentea)
68. Firecracker plant (Cuphea ignea)
69. Flowering maple (Abutilon spp.)
70. Flowering tobacco (Nicotiana alata & N. sylvestris)
71. Four o’clock (Mirabilis jalapa)
72. Freckleface (Hypoestes phyllostachya)
73. Fuchsia (Fuchsia spp.)
74. Gazania (Gazania spp.)
75. Geranium (Pelargonium spp.)
76. Gerbera (Gerbera jamesonii)
77. Glorybower (Clerodendrum spp.)
78. Golden dewdrop (Duranta erecta)
79. Golden trumpet (Allamanda spp.)
80. Grass, elephant (Pennisetum purpureum)
81. Grass, fountain (Cenchrus × advena, syn. Pennisetum × advena & Pennisetum setaceum)
82. Grass, St. Augustine (Stenotaphrum secundatum ‘Variegatum’)
83. Heartleaf aptenia ((Mesembryanthemum cordifolium, syn. Aptenia cordifolia))
84. Heliotrope (Heliotropium arborescens)
85. Honeywort (Cerinthe major)
86. Hummingbird mint (Agastache aurantiaca and other species)
87. Impatiens, garden (Impatiens walleriana)
88. Impatiens, New Guinea (Impatiens hawkeri)
89. Inch plant (Tradescantia spp.)
90. Ivy, English (Hedera helix)
91. Ivy, German (Delairea odorata, syn. Senecio mikanoides)
92. Ivy, ground (Glechoma hederacea)
93. Ivy, Swedish (Plectranthus spp.)
94. Joseph’s coat (Acalypha spp.)
95. Kangaroo paw (Anigozanthos spp.)
96. Lantana (Lantana spp.)
97. Laurentia (Isotoma axillaris, syn. Laurentia axillaris)
98. Lavender cotton (Santolina spp.)
99. Licorice plant (Helichrysum petiolare) 
100. Lily, Peruvian or Inca lily (Alstroemeria spp.)
101. Lotus vine (Lotus bertholotii)
102. Madagascar periwinkle (Catharanthus roseus)
103. Mallow, African (Anisodontea spp.)
104. Mandevilla (Mandevilla spp.)
105. Mangave (Agave spp.)
106. Marvel of Peru (Mirabilis jalapa)
107. Maui wormwood (Artemisia mauiensis)
108. Mexican heather (Cuphea hyssopifolia)
109. Mexican sunflower* (Tithonia spp.)
110. Million bells (Calibrachoa spp.)
111. Morning glory (Ipomoea purpurea & I. tricolor)
112. Morning glory, Dwarf (Evolvulus glomeratus)
113. Nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus)
114. Osteospermum (Dimorphoteca ecklonis, syn. Osteospermum ecklonis)
115. Painted tongue (Salpiglossis sinuata)
116. Pansy (Viola × wittrockiana)
117. Papyrus (Cyperus papyrus)
118. Parrot’s beak (Lotus bertholotii)
119. Passion flower (Passiflora spp.)
120. Pelargonium (Pelargonium spp.)
121. Penstemon (Penstemon spp.)
122. Pentas (Pentas lanceolata)
123. Pepper, ornamental (Capsicum annuum)
124. Periwinkle, bigleaf (Vinca major)
125. Persian shield (Strobilanthes dyerianus)
126. Petunia (Petunia × atkinsiana)
127. Pink smartweed (Persicaria capitata)
128. Plectranthus (Plectranthus spp.)
129. Polka dot plant (Hypoestes phyllostachya)
130. Potato bush (Lycianthes rantonnetii, syn. Solanum rantonnetii)
131. Potato vine (Solanum jasminoides)
132. Purple bell vine (Rhodochiton atrosanguineus)
133. Purple heart (Tradescantia pallida, syn. Setcreasea purpurea)
134. Red-hot cat’s tail (Acalypha hispida)
135. Red-leaved hibiscus (Hibiscus acetosella)
136. Sage (Salvia spp.) (most species)
137. Sedge, Japanese (Carex morrowii, C. oshimenus and others)
138. Sedge, leatherleaf (Carex buchananii, C. comans and others) 
139. Sedge, umbrella (Cyperus alternifolius)
140. Silver falls (Dichondra argentea)
141. Snapdragon (Anthurium majus)
142. Spanish flag (Ipomoea lobata, syn. Mina lobata)
143. Statice (Limonium sinuatum)
144. Stock, common (Matthiola incana)
145. Streptocarpella (Streptocarpella ×)
146. Sweet alyssum, hybrid (Lobularia ×)
147. Sweet potato vine (Ipomoea batatas)
148. Taro (Colocasia spp.)
149. Ti plant (Cordyline terminalis)
150. Trailing snapdragon (Asarina procumbens)
151. Treasure flower (Gazania spp.)
152. Twinspur (Diascia barberae)
153. Umbrella plant (Cyperus alternifolius)
154. Verbena, mock (Glandularia ×)
155. Verbena, rose mock (Glandularia canadiensis)
156. Verbena, tall (Verbena bonariensis)
157. Vinca (Catharanthus roseus)
158. Wingpod purslane (Portulaca umbraticola)

For suggestions on how to bring outdoor plants indoors, read Bring Your Plants Indoors… Without the Bugs.

And here is an article about how to cuttings from tender annuals in the fall: Time to Take Cuttings of Annuals.

Now, get out there and save a few plants!