After a hectic summer of watering, pruning, weeding and fertilising, winter can be a welcome time for the avid gardener to take their annual break from the hard work of gardening. Whilst some things do slow down over the winter months, gardening doesn’t ever really stop. There is still plenty of action happening below the soil, with newly transplanted trees and shrubs developing their root system, earthworms and microbes hard at work, and still plenty of tree and garden maintenance to perform during the winter months.
Much of the summer mulch will have already decomposed leaving your trees and plants vulnerable to the cooler weather. Protect your plants and trees with an important new thick layer of mulch at the beginning of winter to provide your garden with a protective layer. This protective layer ensures that the soil temperature remains even, and eliminates constant extreme variations in temperature from freezing to warm. It is these massive variations in temperatures that take a toll on plants. Ensure you have fully watered the area prior to mulching to help retain some moisture.
Check your garden doesn’t have any drainage problems, and any issues can be corrected by using a fork to create vertical holes to drain away excess moisture in garden beds. Potted plants will require reduced water as will much of the garden. Protect any plants that are vulnerable to the cold or frosts by using frames and a piece of cloth or plastic over them overnight (remembering to remove it once again in the morning) to help to protect them from those extreme cold bites. Tidy up plants by removing dead plant debris such as stems and foliage of annuals to prevent them harbouring diseases and insect eggs throughout winter.
There is lots of preparation you can do during winter which you will see the benefits for come spring. A couple of preparation tips include aerating the lawn to let moisture into the soil ready for fertilising and rejuvenating the lawn during spring. Plant winter crops and prepare the vegetable patch ready for spring planting, remove any weeds from your garden beds to prevent rapid growth come warmer spring months, and planting shrubs now helps to establish their roots before spring growth.
Whilst it might not be as busy as the spring and summer months, as you can see there is still lots to keep the gardener occupied in the cooler, more dormant winter months. It is all about preparing the winter garden to both survive the cool winter months and to prepare for the coming growth in the spring months. It’s important not to neglect your garden over the winter, make the most of the cooler weather and go out and perform many of those jobs now that can be done prior to spring. If you require expert assistance contact Australian Tree Services today, click here.
