Winterizing Your Garden

When the summer heat starts to fade away, those of us in colder regions start to think about winter proofing our gardens. The freezing conditions of winter can wreak havoc on even the hardiest of plants. If you want to save yourself a lot of replanting in the spring, take the following steps to prepare your garden for the cold months ahead.

Watering

Keeping a good watering schedule throughout the fall is very important. Trees and shrubs need to be strengthened so they can stand up to winter winds. Add some fertilizer into your water and you’ll have healthy plants the following spring.

Leaves

Leaves are the first sign of fall, and if you don’t deal with them correctly you’ll have a lot of dead grass on your hands. Rake your yard regularly and dispose of dead leaves properly. You can place them in a compost heap and then use the compost to fertilize your garden next spring.

Annuals, Perennials and Evergreens

Remove any annual flowers or vegetables that can be affected by frost during the winter. Add them to your compost heap, as long as they are still healthy. Any diseased plants should be thrown away.

With your perennial plants, you should trim back any damaged branches or leaves. You can cut back unsightly perennials to the ground and they’ll come back fine in the spring. Make sure to add some winter mulch to your perennials before the first snow.

Broad leaf evergreens like holly need to be protected as well. The cold winter weather can strip these plants of their natural moisture. Use an antidesiccant spray to help them stay hydrated.

Lawn

Add a winter fertilizer to your lawn that will compensate for any chemical imbalances. If you aren’t sure if your lawn needs to be chemically balanced, you can easily test it yourself with a kit from your local home and garden store. You can purchase winter fertilizer that will leave you with a healthier, greener lawn in the spring. Look for a winter formula with a slow release fertilizer.

Bulbs

Tender bulb plants like cannas, dahlias and gladiolus have a hard time surviving the winter. Dig up these and any other summer bulbs as the weather starts to cool. Store the bulbs in vermiculite inside of a paper bag. Keep your bulb bags in a cool, dry spot for the winter.

Fall is also the time of year to plant spring-blooming bulbs like daffodils and tulips. You can plant them as early as September or as late as December, depending on the climate that you live in.

Roses

Rose bushes need special attention to survive the winter months. You’ll need twine, mulch and a plastic flower pot big enough to go over the top of each rose bush. Tie the rose canes together with twine, and build up the soil around the bottom of the canes to at least 10 inches high. You can also use a heavy mulch to protect the bottom of the canes. Cover the top of rose bush with a burlap sack, and then pad mulch around the sides of the bag so that the flower pot will fit securely over the top of the rose. Poke holes in the plastic flower pot for ventilation and then place it over the mulch mound.

Winterizing your lawn and garden isn’t easy, but it’s definitely necessary. Once you complete the steps listed above, you’ll be treated to a healthy, beautiful outdoors in the spring. Take some time this fall to prepare your garden and you’ll be glad you did!