Winterizing Your Garden: Essential Steps for Healthier Plants and Simplified Spring Growth
As the autumn leaves begin to fall and the temperatures start to drop, it's time to prepare your garden for the colder months ahead. Here are some dos and don'ts to help you maintain a healthy garden over winter and set you up for a successful growing season next spring.
Dos:
1. Test and amend your soil pH: Aim for a slightly acidic to neutral range of 6.0-7.0, ideal for winter vegetables like kale and Brussels sprouts. You can lower pH with sulfur or raise it sparingly with lime, as winter amendments act slower than spring ones.
2. Incorporate 2-3 inches of well-aged compost into your garden beds before the first hard frost. This provides slow-release nutrients throughout winter. Fresh manure should be avoided because it releases nutrients too abruptly.
3. Ensure proper soil drainage: Test for standing water and improve it if needed (raised beds, sand, or perlite) to prevent root rot caused by waterlogged soil freezing in winter.
4. Plant cold-hardy winter vegetables: Staggered every 2-3 weeks through early fall to extend the harvest window.
5. Prune fruit trees and protect trunks: Prevent rodent damage and avoid encouraging vulnerable late growth by not fertilizing late in the season.
6. Keep watering your trees and plants: Adequately before winter dormancy to maintain moisture levels.
7. Cover garden beds with organic mulch or organic material: In late fall to improve soil quality and protect roots during the freeze-thaw cycles.
Don'ts:
1. Don't fertilize late in the fall: As it encourages tender new growth that can be damaged by cold.
2. Don't leave fallen leaves or fruit on the ground: This can harbor pests and diseases over winter.
3. Avoid fresh manure in winter preparation: As it can burn seedlings and cause nutrient imbalances.
4. Don't ignore soil drainage issues: Or root rot will likely kill winter crops more than the cold itself.
5. Don't neglect pruning and protective measures: Weakening plants going into winter and exposing them to pests or cold injury should be avoided.
Following these guidelines will help support soil health, protect plants, extend your garden season in fall, and set you up for a successful garden next spring.
Melanie Griffiths, an experienced gardener with over 20 years in homes and gardens media, and Amy Grant, the Digital Community Manager, emphasise the importance of these practices. They recommend using manual weeding, hoeing, or pulling weeds for smaller infestations, and for more stubborn, established weeds, herbicides can be used in the fall when weeds are storing nutrients in their roots to prepare for winter.
For tender potted plants, it's best to bring them indoors once nighttime temperatures consistently fall below 50°F (10°C). Mulching in the fall helps retain moisture, regulate soil temperature, and prevent erosion. Pine bark chips or hardwood are suitable for trees and landscape beds, while compost is suitable for vegetable gardens.
Planting a cover crop like clover or rye in the fall can improve soil structure and suppress weeds. Removing non-diseased plants from the vegetable garden before winter can help prevent the spread of disease and pests. Fallen leaves make excellent organic mulch. A 2-3 inch layer of mulch around perennials, trees, and shrubs can insulate roots, particularly those of young or newly planted plants.
Soilborne diseases can remain active for years, and winterizing plants for colder temperatures ahead may involve moving potted plants indoors, sheltering them in a garage, or placing them against a south-facing wall for added warmth. Soil testing in the fall can help prepare for spring by identifying any soil amendments, lime, or fertilizers that may be needed.
[1] National Gardening Association. (2018). Garden Myths: Should you till your garden in the fall? Retrieved from https://www.gardenmyths.com/garden-myths/should-you-till-your-garden-in-the-fall/ [2] University of Illinois Extension. (2020). Winterizing plants. Retrieved from https://web.extension.illinois.edu/cfivtw/winterizing-plants/ [3] University of Minnesota Extension. (2021). Fall garden chores. Retrieved from https://extension.umn.edu/yard-garden/fall-garden-chores [4] Cornell University Cooperative Extension. (2021). Fall vegetable gardening. Retrieved from https://cornellvegetableprogram.com/fall-vegetable-gardening/ [5] University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources. (2021). Fall vegetable gardening. Retrieved from https://ucanr.edu/sites/Urban_Ag/files/289003.pdf
Keep your home-and-garden alive and thriving during the colder months by paying attention to your lifestyle choices and gardening practices. For instance, avoid fertilizing late in the fall since it encourages tender new growth that can be damaged by cold. Alternatively, incorporate 2-3 inches of well-aged compost into your garden beds before the first hard frost, as it provides slow-release nutrients throughout winter.
