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Guest Post – Keeping Your Garden Alive & Beautiful During The Colder Months
This week’s guest post is extremely timely for this season and is provided by Eric from the Millrace Garden Centre (find their website here). Eric loves his garden and he also loves winter and Christmas time. He likes to spend time outdoors, whatever the weather.
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If you are a keen gardener there are probably a few times of year that you really love and those that you would rather were over faster. During the winter, temperatures go south and our plants are forced to either retreat into the soil again or drop their leaves. Ok you may have a few ever-greens, but right now your main priority should be in ensuring that come spring your garden is still alive and ready to spring back into life.
In this post I am going to cover a few ways that you can ensure your garden survives the cold and is ready to thrive when the sun returns early next year. The good news is that there is plenty that you can do to help even the most delicate plants:
Keeping Them Warm
Just as you need to wrap up warm during the cold months, so does your garden. A frost cover is the ideal option, but in a pinch an old bed sheet can do the trick or even a quilt for when the temperature goes really low.
Warning:
Be careful not to make your plants too hot
Plastic sheeting plus a little winter sun can also harm them
Move your potted plants indoors if you can or into the shed or garage. But those that cannot be moved can be protected by wrapping the pots with bubble wrap. Obviously consider whether there will be sufficient sun light and consider each plant separately – some plants are hardier than others.
Using Cover Crops
You will also want to keep your soil healthy and full of nutrients ready to plant in spring. Using Rye and Hairy Vetch together is a great way to cover unplanted soil.
These two crops will help prevent weeds taking hold and they will keep the soil in good condition ready for spring.
Nutrition Matters
When it’s really cold it is hard for plants to take any nutrition from the soil, so you will need to give them plenty in advance. Adding a layer of compost and mulch will help and try to water them when it is relatively warm and not when the ground is frozen.
For most plants you should only water very lightly during the winter, since they won’t drink much and too much water in the soil will make it freeze more and make your plants even colder.
Feed The Birds
Remember that during the winter food is hard to find, so do your bit and put out foods for the birds. A little bird seed will attract lots of bird life into your garden and while your plants are not looking their best at least you will still have a splash of life in your garden!
Protect Your Pond
Most fish are pretty hardy and can take the cold, but the real hazard for ponds during the winter is surface freezing. If the surface of your pond freezes completely it will seal it so that your pond life cannot breath. All you need to do is check each day and ensure that it does not completely freeze.
An electric de-icer with a heating element is a good way to ensure that there is at least one area of the pond which isn’t frozen, but if you are attentive, checking each evening/morning is fine.
Plan For Spring
Although you might not spend as much time in your garden over the coming months, it is worth planning for spring by keeping your garden tidy and clean, so make the effort to remove waste and care for your plants as best you can, the warm weather will return in no time!
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