AusBonsai

Hi, I live on the Gold Coast, and here we don't get a "real" winter. This presents a problem insofar that deciduous trees don't turn to colour and often don't even drop their leaves because it doesn't get cold enough here on the coast.
Now this may sound a bit kooky, but has anyone with this sort of problem tried putting the trees in a fridge overnight every night for a couple of weeks or so? If you did, was it effective? I will soon have a spare fridge that will be a beer fridge, but the beer will just have to go in the kitchen fridge for a while if necessary.

We have talked about this before. I am aware of one member who tried keeping a tree in the fridge for a few days but got worried about any possible harm and put the tree outside again before the experiment had a chance to work.
I'm not aware of any others trying this so would like to see you go through with it.
I think the idea of fridge overnight and sun during the day is better than just keeping the tree in the fridge for a week

Hi, not sure if that would work/it may but you would need to do it all winter.And have a timer on fridge to turn off during the day at correct times every day,then open the door for light............shouldnt need any light once leaves have dropped ....... .......((((((((Wait for some more responses here))))))) ......

I think some cut all leaves off to induce dormant state and leave outside..

BUT ((DONT)) DO THAT UNTILL YOU FIND OUT FROM THE CORRECT PEOPLE IN YOUR AREA THAT HAVE THAT TYPE..AND PROBLEM.

bUT I WOULD find a local bonsai garden (should be a few around ur area or bris) call them if u have too.or go there to see if the have the same type of tree and what they do,if u dont get a response from here soon enough.

Been discussed, but not for a long time.
IMHO you woud have to provide a full service environment to achieve that result.

Temp control over a few months both day and night, Humidity control, Ensuring natural light
a big refrigerated glasshouse would be needed

Ken

There was a guy on another forum from Bahrain trying to grow a japanese maple. Insanity, I know. But he claimed he could keep in a fridge for some months to simuate a winter.

In my opinion it would probably work. However you would miss all the autumn colour unless you stay in the fridge for a while.

I reckon it'd be worth a try, put it in the fridge at night, back out into the sun in the daytime.. You'd probably only need to do it for 4 - 6 weeks, I'd guess...

If I had a fridge spare I'd be giving it a go!

I have done it successfully with an Azalea i was trying to hold off flowering for a show. I put it in the fridge during the day and brought it out at night and delayed its flowering for two weeks. The tree did not have any setbacks at all. It was a Karume "Christmas cheer".

I have done it successfully with an Azalea i was trying to hold off flowering for a show. I put it in the fridge during the day and brought it out at night and delayed its flowering for two weeks. The tree did not have any setbacks at all. It was a Karume "Christmas cheer".

Why in the fridge during the day and out at night, if you don't mind me asking?

melbrackstone wrote:Why in the fridge during the day and out at night, if you don't mind me asking?

My logic was that an Azalea blooms in Spring because it warms up and gets more light so i kept it in the dark and cool during the day. I brought it out at night so it could breath and stay healthy and i could water it. in essence i extended its Winter hibernation. I put it into the fridge when the flowers had appeared as buds not when they were opening. Actually, i delayed it to much and it went to the show with large swollen buds about to flower

My logic was that an Azalea blooms in Spring because it warms up and gets more light so i kept it in the dark and cool during the day. I brought it out at night so it could breath and stay healthy and i could water it. in essence i extended its Winter hibernation.

Oh yeah, that makes sense now. Ta.

Maybe Raging Bull, and I, could take that into account too. We have much brighter sunnier Winter days than most Temperate climes... so longer in the dark could also help. I understand day length has a lot to do with how plants behave as well as the temps...

I added to the reply Mel.

I brought this subject up a few years ago, asking about fridges and watering with ice cubes etc. I never tried it. I got a reply from someone who knew someone who tried it in the fridge but said it didn't change colour, all the leaves just dropped off.

If you want autumn colour, you should get some Crape myrtle. Very hardy, they definitely change colour and drop their leaves in Brisbane so should on the Gold Coast.

Ok, ta bodhi, I sorta figured they'd be buds rather than flowers. But thanks, I do think we probably need to manipulate both light and temp if we're going to make it work properly.

You guys get an hour or so less sunlight each day than we do in Brisbane during Winter...

I am putting an apple grown from seed in the fridge this weekend to induce dormancy. Note, this is not to colour up leaves.
I will put it in a bag to maintain moisture. I think it will be there for 4-6 weeks to get the right number of chilling hours. There is no need for light as it won't be photosynthesising.
Yes I know this crazy, but I grew it from a seed that had germinated in an apple that I was eating so it was silly thing to do from the start.
I will report back in a couple of months...
Cheers, Symon

Thanks for all the replies with your ideas & experiences . I wanted to know more for the leaf-drop than the colour, that would be a bonus. If the spare fridge becomes available in the next month or so, I'll give it a try, if not the experiment will have to wait 'til next year. It would also save me defoliating the trees.
Cheers, Frank.