by Pamela Kay

Created on: March 17, 2009   Last Updated: October 26, 2009

Knowing how to winterize your garden will not only clean out your garden, protect your plants and break the life cycle of harmful garden pests; it also stops heaving of the soil due to the constant freeze and thaw of winter, which injures roots and moves bulbs to the surface. Here are some tips for how to winterize your garden.

*Clean It Out

No matter how small your gardening space, each fall you should put it to bed for the winter, unless you live in a tropical region with no discernible winter and the place to start is removing any stakes, support frames or cages and storing them. Drain water hoses, roll, and store them with sprinklers and other gardening tools. Then you can move on to cleaning out old growth and other debris.

Cut back perennials close to the ground and use a layer of mulch to protect the roots, bulbs and rhizomes. Pull up all spent annuals and if you grow plants with large thick stems or stalks such as corn, pull them up by the root, shake off any soil that is clinging and add the stalk to the compost pile. Leaving dead, decaying plant matter in the garden area provides the perfect nesting area for insects to breed.
*Consider A Green Manure Crop

If you have a large vegetable garden, consider planting a green manure crop such as clover to prevent erosion and provide nutrients when it's tilled under in the spring. Not only does clover attract beneficial insects, it builds good soil and looks more attractive than bare earth.

Clover will also affix nitrogen from the air, which is transferred to the soil when tilled under and help prevent heaving of the soil. When spring arrives, till the clover under about two or three weeks before you plan to plant your garden. You will be amazed at how tillable and healthy your soil has become in just one winter.

*Fall Fertilizing

If you don't use a green manure, consider spreading a low nitrogen fertilizer over the garden, tilling it under and covering the garden with a layer of compost. Until the ground freezes, roots continue to grow and use nutrients present in the soil. Fall fertilizing will make the roots healthier and more cold hardy. Be sure to use a low nitrogen fertilizer so you don't stimulate above ground growth.

*Fall Mulching

For flowerbeds, mulch is the answer to protecting both the soil and the roots of your plants. There is a wide variety of mulch types to choose from such as compost, straw, pine needles, leaves and bark chips. Several inches will protect the roots in most areas but more can

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>