Before the last autumn leaf fades, it’s a good idea to put your garden to bed, as the saying goes. Whether winter brings you just a few snowflakes or epic snowdrifts, you can take steps to ensure that the coldest season takes only the smallest toll on your landscape. Then, as the first deep freezes and chilly snowflakes arrive, your garden and gear will be safely tucked in for a long winter’s nap. Learn about things to do – and simple mistakes you want to avoid – as you wrap up your garden for winter.
Don’t Plant Too Late
Making late additions to the landscape can result in devastating losses next spring, especially in areas where the ground freezes. Perennials are the most susceptible to late planting, as alternating freezing and thawing of soil literally shoves plants out of soil, exposing crowns. Shrubs and trees can go into the ground later, but for best winter survival rates, you should have all plants in place by six weeks before soil typically freezes.
Prune Shrubs
Pruning causes plants to produce new growth, which is tender and highly vulnerable to freezing temperatures. Wait to prune shrubs, including butterfly bush and caryopteris, until spring when all danger of frost has passed. At that point you can remove any winter-killed branches. In future years, aim to get pruning done by late August so plants have time to harden off before freezes arrive.
Don’t Ignore Slugs
One of the best times to tackle slug control is in fall when mature slugs come out to lay eggs. Apply slug bait in areas where you know there’s a problem, or go out at night with a flashlight to deal with slugs you spot. It’s easy to handpick slugs (wearing gloves, of course!) and toss them into a bucket of soapy water to die. Also remove any debris from planting beds that might provide a hiding place for these munching machines.
Plant Winter-Hardy Varieties
Fall lettuce crops can linger well into December in mild winter areas. Plant cold-tolerant varieties to ensure the longest harvest period. Good choices for fall planting include ‘Four Seasons’ lettuce (shown), ‘Arctic King’ and ‘North Pole.’ To overwinter lettuce in regions with cold winters, plant ‘Winter Marvel’ or ‘Brune d’Hiver.’ In mild winter areas, sow seeds of ‘Four Seasons’ or any oakleaf type.
Don’t Forget to Take Cuttings
Take cuttings of plants that aren’t hardy enough to survive your region’s winter. Good candidates include Mexican bush sage, mints, coleus, pineapple sage, polka dot plant and many others. Most, like this plectranthus, root easily in water and can be tucked into pots later. Others, like scented geraniums, grow best when dipped in rooting hormone powder and stuck directly into soil to root.
Remember to Water New Trees
Trees that you plant in fall need consistent watering as they enter their first winter. If winter brings frozen soil without snow, give your tree a drink whenever you have above-freezing temperatures. One hose-less way to ferry water to a tree is with a water bag in a cart.
Deadhead Self-Sowers
Plants that self-sow aggressively in the landscape can be beautiful in bloom but a gardener’s nightmare if allowed to go to seed. Clip seedheads on plants that tend to self-sow heavily in your garden. Good candidates include Joe-Pye weed, goldenrod, boltonia and black-eyed Susans.
Bring These Plants Inside
Once night temperatures stay below 50 degree F to 55 degree F, it’s a good idea to shift potted houseplants indoors for winter. The same rule applies to non-hardy potted plants you plan to overwinter indoors, even in a dormant state. Keep an eye on weather forecasts for unexpected early-season snows. A few hours of the lightest snow on a tropical plant can kill leaves. Even this cool-loving fuchsia suffers damage when covered with snow.
Remember to Mulch
A winter mulch can be a gardener’s best friend, especially around new additions to the landscape. That extra mulch layer can help prevent frost heave around new plants that may not have an extensive root system to help keep them anchored in soil as it freezes and thaws. Put a 2-inch-thick layer around the base of plants to insulate roots.
Spray for Weeds
Be sure to read the label of your favorite weed killer. For common chemicals like Round-Up, 50°F is usually the lowest temperature where the product remains effective at killing weeds. Many plants essentially stop growing as soil temperatures fall into the 50-degree range, so at that point spraying is a waste of time and money. The answer is to spray early in the fall season while plants are actively growing and air temps are still in the ideal 60-degree range.
Do your Pre-Snow Clean-Up
In snowy winter climates, aim to clean up the garden before early snowfalls arrive. Doing this helps to reduce winter resting places for pests and diseases that go into hiding once snow flies. It’s also easier on you — no frozen fingers.
Destroy Spent Veggie Crops
It’s vital to destroy spent vegetable crops, especially those that hosted problem pests, like Mexican bean beetles. Don’t toss these plants into a compost pile unless you know it heats enough to destroy pests and eggs. It’s safer to dispose of infested plants and fallen leaves in bags you put at the curb for garbage pick up.
Prevent Hoses from Freezing
Before night temperatures drop to freezing, remove all hose-end attachments, including watering wands and nozzles. Detach hoses from hose bibs, and close any interior shut-off valves along exterior water supply lines. Drain hoses by running them out to their full length from a hose reel or other holder. It works best if you can let one end run along an incline so when you rewind the hose, the water flows out naturally with gravity. Store irrigation gear in a garage or shed.
Use Frost Blankets
If you have a garden that’s actively producing when frost threatens, there’s no excuse for not investing in some season-extending equipment to keep the fresh flavors — and nutrition — coming into your kitchen. This kit costs less than $25 and comes with built-in hoops and the ability to extend up to 18 feet.
Do a Final Mowing
In snowy regions, grass that goes into winter without being mowed is more prone to develop snow mold. Try to give grass one last cut before winter snows arrive. Also, once the ground freezes, stay off the lawn. Frozen grass is more prone to breaking as you walk on it, which can damage individual grass crowns.
Don’t let Leaves Pile Up
If you allow leaves to stay on grass over winter, you’ll likely find dead lawn patches in spring. Use a leaf vac to chop leaves into smaller pieces that make a terrific mulch on planting beds and vegetable gardens, or add them to your compost pile. Mowing over leaves is another easy way to downsize them. Catch the chopped leaves with a bag attachment, or just let them lie in place to help nourish the lawn.
Wrap those Vulnerable Shrubs
Take time to wrap shrubs and small trees with a winter coat of burlap for protection against cold temps. Plants at risk include those with borderline hardiness and evergreens prone to winter burn. Spray evergreens with an anti-transpirant (which helps reduce moisture loss) before wrapping in burlap. Before adding the burlap, protect trunks against chewing rodents by tossing mouse bait that’s enclosed in a protective container near the base of the plant.
Protect Trunks from Winter Critters
As food sources become scarce, rabbits, mice and voles can make quick work of bark on unprotected trees and shrubs. Use tree guards around young tree trunks, and surround shrubs with hardware mesh. You can also try to attract raptors like owls and hawks, which prey on these mammals, by erecting artificial perch poles.
Don’t Ignore Tall Shrubs
In general, it’s best not to prune shrubs in fall, as noted in Mistake No. 2. But if you garden in a region known for heavy snows and ice storms, it’s wise to prune reliably winter hardy, tall shrubs that you normally cut back hard in early spring. This includes things like Knock Out roses, panicle hydrangeas and smooth hydrangeas. After a hard freeze, cut these plants back by roughly one-third to reduce height. This will help limit damage from storms with hefty precipitation that can snap tall branches. Prune the remaining stem length in late winter/early spring.
Give Voles a Safe Space
In spring, if you typically find vole trails like these in your lawn as the snow melts, take steps before the snow flies to shift the critters away from turf. Voles chew pathways through grass roots to hide from predators when there’s steady snow cover. Apply a castor oil-based repellent like Mole Max to lawns or flower beds well before snow arrives to send voles packing. Follow package instructions carefully, and make another application in known problem areas right before the first snowfall.
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