Winter Gardening Tips

As cold weather sets in and our minds begin to buzz about the upcoming holiday season, it’s time to prepare your lawn and garden for the winter. As the growing season closes, it’s time to put up the garden tools and watering cans until next year and get your yard ready to “sleep” through the cold until we hit springtime.

Clean

Tidy up flowerbeds, deadhead perennials and get rid of any lingering weeds. Leaves are everywhere now, but they can be a great resource – pile them up, store them in a corner, let them sit for a year and voila, mulch. If that’s too much hassle, do it the old fashioned way – bag them for a trash collector.

Mulch

Top off your garden with mulch (fallen leaves work well, although diseased leaves should be removed), which will decompose throughout the winter, adding nutrients to the soil.

Store

After you clean your tools, store them in a dry area – you can also leave them in a bucket of sand with baby oil (the sand prevents rust; the oil keeps them lubricated). Tomato cages, unused pots and containers, and garden hoses can be moved inside once cleaned. Also, don’t forget to bring in any plants that don’t like the cold weather.

Feed

Some birds are still around, so although you might not put out as much birdseed as you would in the spring or summer, a few species will still visit your feeders. A few good recommendations include black oil sunflower seeds (good all year round), suet and peanuts.