Top Winter Preparation Tips For Your Garden
After the hustle and bustle of the spring and summer months when our gardens wake up, stretch out and show off their colours, there comes the time in the year when our gardens begin to wind down and bunker in for autumn and winter. With this, comes the need to prepare our outdoor spaces for this dark and wet time.
Autumn brings its sea of rusty colours with its falling foliage and crisp fresh mornings – with this only a couple of weeks away believe it or not! Autumn also brings a brilliant opportunity to get out into our outdoor spaces to prepare our gardens for the colder, more rainy months ahead. Whilst the air is still humid and dry, NOW is the best time to get prepped.
Once Autumn hits, it is time to trim back, de-weed, mulch and tidy up. We believe it’s the perfect time of year to get the more maintenance-orientated tasks done, whilst the last of the stable weather and lighter nights begin to become fewer and far between.
Here are some expert winter preparation tips for your garden this season:
Up-root flowers
Annual flowers bloom amazingly during warmer months, bringing colour and vibrancy to your garden, such as roses, daisies and lillies. Although no one wants to up-root these beautiful plants at the end of the season, it’s a job worth doing to save them for next year, which reduces the time you need to spend in your garden over winter.
To get the most out of your annual plants once up-rooted, add them to your compost pile. And, if digging up your plants doesn’t come naturally to you, consider using only perennials and evergreens, which last longer.
If you are unsure what plants do and do not need up-rooting as part of winter preparation, make sure to contact us, we’d be more than happy to help you on your garden journey.
Protect your plants
Tender plants need to be tucked up safe and warm for winter with a layer of protective insulation. When preparing vegetable gardens for winter, you can use horticultural fleece to wrap around delicate plants in your garden to give them better odds of surviving into the new year.
Winter preparation is key for protecting your plants. If you’re worried about any particularly flimsy looking plants, now is the time to give them a bit of support with stakes. Potted plants that you think may not weather the frost can be brought indoors for a winter spent in the warmth or closer to the house for extra shelter.
De-weeding
As most of us know, weeds can become problematic if left to go wild, and if you don’t manage them now, they will become a bigger problem come winter and through to springtime.
As part of your winter preparation, make sure weeds come out right from the root, especially where they’ve come up through your paving joints and alongside garden edging. Driveways, decking areas and patios are usually the worst affected areas when it comes to weeds, making your outdoor space look less aesthetic.
You could go for the easy solution of a weed-killer but try to opt for something that’s less damaging to the environment, and be mindful it may impact your neighbouring plant’s growth if you’re spraying close to your garden border.
Cover up garden furniture
The colder seasons won’t treat your garden furniture so kindly as dampness and wet spells cause potential rust and mould to attach to your furniture. As you won’t be needing them so often in the colder weather, it is best to store garden furniture pieces in the shed or garage as part of your winter preparation, as this is where its warm and there is no worry of them getting damaged.
If this isn’t possible, tough waterproof sheet coverings can be securely fixed around them, and cushions can be put away in a garage or shed in waterproof bags. Especially with the cost surrounding outdoor furniture nowadays, you need to keep it protected more than ever, as replacing them year on year can cost you thousands unnecessarily.
Keep driveways, patios and decking maintained
The colder months can bring snow and ice onto patios, decking and driveways. De-icer can be used on these surfaces, however, there may be some temporary discolouration once the snow and ice have disappeared. This should only be temporary and will fade away over time.
Blow or sweep your driveway, patio and walkways on a regular basis throughout the autumn and winter. Condensation (dew) is caused by the temperature difference between day and night and left sitting too long mixed with colourful leaves, can stain the surface of your pavers.
Pressure washing your paved surface whether in the back garden or front of the house will help to remove dirt, debris, chemicals and petrol that can otherwise be carried into cracks and cause damage.
There is a craft to power washing, however, and you need to make sure you don’t damage the paving. Avoid spraying the jet directly onto the surface, and instead, work from a good range and at a shallow angle (no more than 30°), moving in a diagonal motion. This is to avoid parallel washing of the joints, which could damage the cement pointing. If you need assistance with this, be sure to get in contact with us.
Protect yourself from flooding and water-logging
Flooding and waterlogging can have a detrimental impact on your garden, so it’s important to be prepared as the risk of heavy rain increases year on year. To prevent plants from rotting and dying during heavy rain, improve your soil through year-round cultivation and consider growing them in raised beds to elevate them out of harm’s way.
Raised beds themselves can also benefit from an extra layer of protection from stone walling, which also adds a stylish aesthetic to your garden.
Further flooding in your garden can be prevented through the installation of permeable paving, which allows water to quickly drain away rather than pooling and collecting. If you have a prized lawn, rake the leaves off it and aerate using a garden fork pushed right into the grass at intervals.
Look after the local wildlife
The birds, insects and mammals that call your garden home are such an important part of its well-being – that’s why it’s in your interest to take care of them throughout winter. Top up your bird table regularly with nuts or leave seed heads on plants so that birds and other wildlife can feed off them.
If you’ve got a garden pond, make sure there’s always a hole in the ice for wildlife to use as an entrance and exit when they fancy a drink. If you’re really dedicated, you could even make an insect hotel and place it in a sheltered spot to help chilly ladybirds live to see another year.
Conclusion
It’s clear to see that even though our gardens appear to be winding down for the colder months ahead, there are still opportunities to enjoy our outdoor spaces, even if it is focusing more on maintenance.
These simple winter preparation tips will ensure your garden is ready for the eventual arrival of spring, ensuring that your garden is well nourished, tidy, and ready to bloom once again.
Contact Us Today
If you need any assistance when it comes to garden maintenance, be sure to contact us for more information on this service that we provide for homes across Gloucestershire.
