Hi croton heads,

My crotons , some at least, have dropped many leaves , looking shabby, one's down to a stick of a plant but then................I see new buds coming on, hopefully all will be fine come rainy days and warmer days. I do omit to water them I admit.

What's croton winter experience across the board ?

A bit of leaf wilt with the very dry weather, but not leaf drop. They look fine after a couple of nights of rain. I'd say yours got too dry maybe. Your day temps are a couple of degrees warmer too, so maybe a bit more shock etc.

regards

Tyrone

Hi Wal

Normally temps below 10c for a prolonged period will cause leaf-drop. What have your night temps been like lately?

Cheers

Dennis

Hi Wal,

Crotons hate drying winds (hot or cold).  In addition, drier weather brings on spider mites and thrips that love to suck on croton leaves.  The leaves take on a faded appearance and fall from the plant shortly thereafter.  The combination of dry weather and insects can make the plant look shabby throughout the entire  winter.  To minimize these effects, keep the plants moist and rinse off the foliage (especially leaf undersides) from time to time to keep the insects at bay.  If the plant has gotten leggy, wait until the onset of warmer weather and cut the plant back.  Doing this will bring it back faster.

Some croton cultivars are hardier than others.  The more common types like Mortii and Stewartii can handle temps in the low 30's with minimal effects.  Some of the narrow leaf varieties tend to defoliate at higher temps 38-40F.  The rest are somewhere in between.  

Ray

Most of mine hold up very well in the winter and some lose some leaves. The coldest nights in winter in my garden see temps in the upper 30's F.  The older the plant, in my experience, the hardier they are to the cold. All of mine came through the winter with either no leaf loss or up to half of the leaves fallen. I try to keep them on the dry side in the winter.