Preparing Your Garden fo the Winter

Some people believe that when the weather starts getting colder and the


leaves start to fall, it is time to put away the gardening tools and wait


until next spring to work on their garden again. Wrong. Winter is an


important time to maintain your garden's health and assure yourself a good


crop for next year. You may think that might take to long to prepare your


garden, but the truth is that it takes less than one day to prepare your


garden for the upcoming winter.





When the nighttime temperatures drop to less than forty-five degrees


Fahrenheit for more than four days in a row, or frost is forecasted for


your area (usually around late October or November) you know its time to


begin preparing your garden. You should begin by evaluating your garden


design, check which plants grew well in the past season, and which plants


did not do well. Fall is a good time to decide which plants will remain in


you garden next year, and which ones should go.





It is also a good time to decide which new plants you want to grow. To


make your garden more colorful and healthy, be sure only to plant the more


hardy plants during the fall so that they can withstand the winter. Some


plants that will do fine being planted in fall are: rudbeckia, Aster


Novi-belgii, Anemone Japonica, panicle hyandea, endive, escarole, and


Brussels sprouts. You can find all of these and more in gardening


magazines or your local nursery.





After you have finished this you should begin cleaning up your garden.


Begin by pulling out weeds that may have cropped up, and raking fallen


leaves. Weeds and rotten leaves can carry insects and diseases that might


be harmful to your garden. You should also rid your garden of spent annual


plants, and harvest your vegetables and other plants that cannot withstand


the winter weather. After fall has come and gone, the leaves will be off


your trees and you can see the rotten branches. Trimming off the unwanted


branches from your trees isn't necessary to your gardens health, but may


help later on by not dropping branches on your plants and not blocking too


much of the sun.





If you have younger trees you should consider wrapping them and supporting


them with stakes to help them survive the winter wind and cold. Putting


mulch over your garden for the winter can be a helpful way to protect


plants from sudden temperature changes and heavy snow. For mulch you can


use about five inches of shredded bark, pine needles, or a variety of


other materials. You have to be careful not to mulch too early, because


some insects may still be alive and able to take shelter in it for the


winter.





Once you are finished with your gardening tools you should clean them and


make sure they are in a safe place where they won't rust and you know


where they'll be for next year. Before winter comes you should always set


out slug repellent, as slugs are one of the worst bugs to have in your


garden. If you have a pool or fountain in your garden, be sure to take out


any fish that you have in them and bring them inside. There’s nothing


sadder than a fish frozen in a block of ice.