CARING for YOUR WINTER GARDEN PART 2
It is not necessarily the ice and snow of winter that kills plants.
In fact, snow and ice can act as insulators, protecting plants from wind and sudden temperature drops. More dangerous than the visible signs of winter is something we rarely notice: soggy, poorly drained soil that repeatedly freezes and thaws.
Plants that sit in wet soil can suffer root damage when the ground freezes. Water in the soil turns to ice crystals, injuring and even killing vital root tissue. Hardy plants can recover from dead top growth. Most require nothing more than a hard pruning. But no plant can recover from severe root damage.
How can you prevent the typically soggy Northwest winter from taking a toll on your garden?
It is surprisingly easy. All you need is well drained soil and a layer of mulch.
WELL DRAINED SOIL
How do you turn heavy, Seattle clay into well-drained soil?
- Aerate the soil every spring and fall
- Add plenty of organic matter
Plants grown in soil rich in organic matter will be healthier, require less water, and usually suffer less insect damage. So what is “organic matter“? Any living thing that you add to your garden is organic matter. As it decomposes, it enriches the soil. Compost, mulch, organic fertizers, minerals, grass clippings, shredded leaves, bark… till it in!
Of course, you won’t turn clay into loam in one season, which is why regular aeration is also important. Aerate and lime your turf areas to improve soil structure. A good organic fertilizer applied in the fall will encourage root growth, rather than top growth. Deep, healthy roots will break up heavy soil.
Never walk on your planting beds, unless you are on a path.
Apply at least a one inch layer of mulch to your flower beds in the fall. Be careful not to press the mulch right up to the stems or to let crater-like pockets form around your plants when the mulch mounds up. You don’t want to trap your plants inside a bowl of freezing water!
Taken together, these steps will pull water down deep into the subsoil where it will not freeze.
This also prevents the phenomena known as “heaving.” As ice forms in the top layer of soil, it expands. This pushes the soil up. If there is a lot of ice, the roots of your plants may be pushed towards – or even above – the surface of the soil. Once again, root damage will kill your garden faster than just the cold.
So remember: the key to winter survival for your garden is a thick layer of organic mulch. Garden bark or compost will protect the soil in the winter and can be turned under in the spring, adding vital organic matter to your garden.
This post was Part 2 of a series.
Part 1: Caring For Your Winter Garden
Part 3: Protect Your Pots
Photo by w.marsh Released under Creative Commons License