Question
I dug up some small plants that had self-seeded in my garden.  They were small enough that I thought that they would not have survived the winter. ( I live just outside of Chicago, zone 5)  The plants were  a small bush delphenium, which grows about 12-18"tall.  Anyway, I brought them inside for the winter and they grew.  They tried to bloom twice, but my cat ate the flowers as they started to open. (Nice cat, huh?)  My question is, do I need to put them outside and let them go dormant before spring officially hits, or can I wait and plant them outside in April after the last frost?  I'm sure they'll live either way, but I do want them to bloom this summer.  I don't know if they have to go dormant  to flower again.
Any ideas?  I've never brought outside perennials inside during the winter before.


Answer
Hi Jane,
Thanx for your question.  I'm sure you can plant them out after the last frost.  Don't do it now or they might die from the shock of sudden cold.  They may not bloom again this summer since they have already tried to bloom.  Perennials do go dormant during the cold to "rest" before blooming and setting seed the next season.  Sometimes when plants are forced to bloom like yours they may not recover and die or it may take a few seasons to store up energy from the sun to begin blooming again.  At any rate, don't plant them outside until after the last frost.  I hope this helps.
Tom