Maintaining the Health of Your Garden During the Winter
"Old Man," he says. Winter's arrival does not imply that the Winter garden should be ignored. Quite the contrary. Maintaining the garden's level footing in the face of the damages that winter may bring is a never-ending task. It is merely a recipe for a headache in the spring to ignore regular garden closure duties and winter care jobs. Follow a couple of these winter gardening suggestions, and a bountiful spring will be waiting for you in a few short months!
Creating a winter garden table in the backyard
Take efforts in the late autumn or early January to create a winter garden that is both visually appealing and healthy in its composition. Make a thorough clean-up of the garden. Before the snow begins to fall, make sure that any garden garbage is removed from the property. Because bacteria may get into any cuts in the plant or into the plant's roots if this "junk" is left behind, it creates a chance for germs to infiltrate the plant. The most serious threat to a winter garden is the development of bacteria on the plant, which might lead to illness.
When pruning, keep an eye out for color
If you have had your garden for at least one winter season, you will be familiar with what has color and what does not at this time of year. Trim this color sparingly, keeping an eye out for renegade branches, but make careful to maintain the general shape of the shrub so that the winter color can show through in a consistent manner. You should leave it alone if you are unsure and instead gain a sense of what has winter color is for next winter. It's best to leave a shrub's winter bud on the plant since here is where the bloom will emerge in the spring after the winter.
Remove any limbs that have been sliced or damaged
As the winter approaches, it is likely that a shredded or sliced limb (which looks like a knife cutting into an apple about an eighth of an inch deep) may end up hanging or falling to the ground. If you take care of it now, your garden will be strong and ready for whatever the winter has in store for it. A suitable incision should be made around one-quarter of an inch above the nodule on the limb (which seems to be similar to a knuckle of sorts), which should be sliced at an angle for appropriate results.
Remove weeds until the ground is free of them
During the winter, weeds may also be a nuisance because of their growth. Not only will they rot and provide a risk of disease transmission, but they will also continue to develop roots until the earth freezes solid, if not sooner. This will only serve to increase their invasiveness in the spring. Apart from that, keeping the ground clean will provide a wonderful clean contrast to the dormant plants in the garden, which is a pleasant bonus.
A fine, straight edge
If you don't want to opt for a more casual style, be sure you edge your garden flower beds before the ground becomes frozen. As the edge freezes in the winter, not only will this give you a sharp appearance throughout the winter months, but it will also bring you one step closer to getting a good start in the spring.
To wrap or not to wrap? That is the question
Observing many winter gardens, you may note that individuals have covered their evergreen bushes in burlap or some other kind of cloth to keep them from freezing. In most cases, this is done to keep the plant from being damaged by heavy snowfall or strong winds. Unless you have the possibility for a significant snowfall or a forecast of heavy winds, this is not a need in most cases. Although the wind problem is a concern, it is important to note that all plants, regardless of their species, need air circulation to survive. If you wrap a shrub or plant too tightly, air circulation will be reduced, creating an environment conducive to moisture buildup and disease development. If you want to wrap your bushes, be sure to do so securely while keeping air circulation in mind.
It can't hurt to build up some cash
To provide additional protection for shrubs and plants' root systems during colder winters, mounding around their bases is sometimes used as an ornamental feature. The requirement for mounding varies depending on where you are growing and in what climate zone you are gardening. Anyhow, you'll want to make certain that you compress the soil in the mound by applying a solid push to it with your hands. This helps to remove some of the air from the mound and, in general, makes a mound of soil appear a little more appealing. It also demonstrates that you were a bit more meticulous in your planting. Visitors to your winter garden are sometimes taken aback by your efforts.
Trees are considered to be plants as well
Make an inspection of your trees now, before the winter winds begin to scream in your direction. Examine the tree for any branches that have become old, seem to be growing over the appropriate vertical route of a well-trimmed tree, or appear to have perished throughout the course of the year. What you're searching for is any limb or branch that may brush against another incessantly, causing a wound in the bark to develop. Cutting a branch as winter approaches or throughout the winter months is not something you want to do, but there are occasions when you have no choice.
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Maintaining the Health of Your Garden During the Winter