WINTERIZING GARDEN AND “THINKING GREEN”

Chilly mornings, falling leaves and the first blast of arctic air from Canada reminds us winter is right around the corner.  While some gardeners just finished planting trees and mums, others are starting to winterize the garden.

“Think Green” as you develop your chore list: protect those annual plants from frost; putting perennial gardens to bed for winter; and preparing trees and shrubs for the cold.

“GREEN TIPS”

    Instead of raking and bagging the leaves to cart off to the landfill, shred leaves with a mower to create a 1 to 2 inch thick layer of chopped leaves on top of the grass. The earthworms in the lawn will love the food, and the leaves will eventually break down, adding nutrients to the soil.

While your perennials are preparing for winter, your annuals are not.  Remove them, roots and all.  Lay them in windrows at the garden’s edge and grind them with a rotary lawn mower. Move the mower back and forth over the vegetation in a way that will blow the chopped material back into the garden.

Mix this chopped material into the garden; it will decompose long before the soil freezes.  Don’t however, chop and mix weeds.  Their seeds will over-winter in the soil only to sprout up at the first sign of spring.  Some weed roots propagate themselves, and will make a healthy – if unwanted – comeback next year.

For leaves you do collect, compost them with other organic matter, such as fresh grass clippings, spent vegetable and flower plants, and kitchen scraps.

Whether it is store-bought or homemade, compost contains everything plants need to grow, including organic matter and nutrients.  When incorporated into the soil, compost can eliminate the need for some commercial fertilizers.   Simply apply compost around the plant base as mulch or work it into the soil.  You can also enrich your lawn by spreading a light layer of compost over the grass.

WINTER PROTECTION

Most perennials are preparing for winter by “hardening off”, a process of gradual adjustment to cold weather.  You can help them make it through the winter by mulching beneath shrubs and around tree trunks.

The goal is to keep the plants dormant, rather than to keep them warm.  If plants are kept too warm, they may break bud and the subsequent tender growth will be killed by winter conditions.  On the other hand, winter mulch does provide some insulation against severe low temperatures.

Timing is critical when applying winter mulch.  Applying it too early can smother the plant and encourage disease development.  Once the plants are completely dormant and temperatures are consistently below freezing, then the winter mulch can be applied.

DON’T FORGET THE GARDEN TOOLS

A little preventative maintenance now can prevent frustration and expensive repair in the future.  Proper maintenance also extends the life of tools and equipment and makes working with them easier and more efficient.

Clean your tools with a wire brush, scraper, or a strong stream of water.  Sharpen hoes, spades, pruners, loppers or saws.  Check all tools for loose screws or nuts and tighten.  Spray all bare metal parts with penetrating oil such as WD40 to prevent rust.

TOM’S TIMELY TIPS FOR NOVEMBER

•    Clean those rose beds.  Be sure all diseased leaves are raked up and disposed of.

•    Inspect trees and shrubs for bagworm capsules.  Remove and destroy them to reduce next year’s pest population.

•    Bring the garden hose indoors during winter.  Once cold, plastic hoses are easily cracked or broken when coiled.  Don’t coil them outdoors; rather, bring them inside and allow them to warm to room temperature before coiling.

•    Don’t cut off tops of perennials until they have dried (usually late winter).

•    Water trees, shrubs and foundation plantings thoroughly before ground freezes.

•    To protect young trees from rodents, use sleeves made from wire mesh or plastic tubing securely fastened around the trunk.

Tom McNutt is a professor emeritus at The Ohio State University and a retired TV garden expert.