Frosty winter gardens are much more difficult to handle than frost free areas as wet frozen roots are a major cause for killing the plants. What to do in your frosty winter garden?
1. Lawn: Don’t allow frost or dew to dry on the grass. Never try removing the dew with the help of a broom. Early morning is the best time to sprinkle water on the grass. To resist the winter chill, give urea or ammonium sulphate and flood it immediately. Do a treatment of sludge as it creates warmth. In areas receiving heavy snowfall, clean your lawn of any debris as once the snow comes, these can smother your grass, damage your turf and leave your lawn vulnerable to diseases.
2. Herbs: Some frost-sensitive herbs like basil should be brought indoors during winter. Cover your plants with red thin cloth in the evening and put in a shade or in your veranda which also gets enough sunlight.
3. Roses: In order to save roses in beds from frost, feed farm manure to bushes of roses around this time of the year. Make sure your plants are insect, mite and disease free and all fallen leaves are picked up before you apply any winter protection materials. Water them, keeping a gap of light to 10 days.
4. Chrysanthemums: Cut off the main stem after flowering is over. Set aside the pots and water sparingly. If they are outdoor chrysanthemums try protecting them with a plastic sheet at night but don’t overdo wrapping your plants.
All indoor plants should be exposed to sunlight during the day and kept back in the evening as most of them get easily affected with winter chill. The short days of winter can very hard on house plants. To avoid frost bite, do not let dew dry on any plant. Don’t water as often and it’s always better to sprinkle water on leaves early in the morning. Most plants rest during winter, hence fertilization is not necessarily required.
Areas receiving cold winds can also completely damage your garden. Broad leaf trees are quite vulnerable in cold winds. Depending on your frosty winter garden layout and size, try creating a screen to act as windbreaker which can filter and protect the plants from chilled winter winds. Depending on the plant type, containers can be wrapped in very cold areas and moved into a protected area such as greenhouse. Grouping pots together also helps as an isolated pot would be more prone to get cold and frost bite. Create a circle, keep small plants inside and surround them with tall plants acting as a cover to keep them warm.
