Winter Garden Prep – Tips to Winterize your Garden

Summer is almost over and soon the new season will be upon us. Weeding, watering and spending time in the garden will be over if you live in a cool climate like me. Most of what needs to be completed is a matter of cleaning up and covering up the garden. Many of my herbs will be brought inside and I am hopeful they will survive until springtime. Below you will find some ideas to help with winter garden prep.

Winter Garden Prep

Winter Garden Prep

I container garden so my winter prep will be slightly different to those who have garden areas in their yard.  Before beginning, take a look at your gardens and review what plants worked in certain areas and which ones did not. This will help with the new gardening season in spring.

Clean-Up

The time has come to begin harvesting some of your plants. Before you begin, you will need to remove the weeds and leaves and pull out any annuals remaining. Prune any herbs and bring in any items that will not survive if it gets too cold. Tomatoes can be left on a window sill to ripen, or you can search for green tomato recipes.

For Perennials, you can cut them down or leave them standing. When I had a yard, I would leave mine standing and let the snow fall onto them.

Winter garden prep

Winter Planting and Composting

Once you have cleaned and harvested all your gardens, prepare the soil and plant bulbs for the spring. If you are adding new bulbs, make sure they are of good quality for survival and be sure to follow the instructions that come with the bulbs.

When all the leaves have been raked up, keep them in a pile and let them decompose over the winter. It can be added to the garden in springtime simply by mixing it in with your new soil.

Outdoor to Indoor

When you bring in the plants from outdoor to indoors, there are a couple of things you will need to do first.

  • wash plants with soapy water to remove any little bugs
  • if transplanting, use new soil
  • set in a spot with direct sunlight to keep them warm

Trees and Shrub Care

If you have trees and shrubs, it is a good idea to make sure they are ready for the winter. If you have wildlife close by you will need to make sure the trees and shrubs are protected from hungry animals with mesh or chicken wire. Do not prune shrubs. If you do, new growth may start before the winters chilling cold. Water all trees, shrubs then cut and fertilize grass before the snow falls.

Don’t forget to clean and store all garden tools and hoses.

What are your tips for winter garden prep?

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