All the gardeners want to keep their garden alive and appealing throughout the year. However, winters are harsh and frosty to keep the plantations lush green. Most of the plants shed their leaves and get rid of the wastes during fall every year. But, various tender plants are affected badly by severe winter temperatures and need extra care and gardening hacks to be kept safe.
When it comes to gardening, it is very important to protect your plants from weather conditions. It’s not only about having a beautiful garden in the spring and summer but also about having healthy plants during the harsh winter months. There are lots of ways to protect your plants, but here are some simple hacks that will keep your plants safe during the winter months:
Winter Gardening Hacks To Protect Your Plants
The last thing you want to do during winter is fighting the elements. Keeping your plants alive during the harsh winter months can be a challenge. Many gardening experts advise planting in pots so you can move them indoors if necessary. But this can mean you spend more money. So what are some easy and inexpensive tips for protecting your outdoor garden? Use a greenhouse to grow plants year-round. You’ll save money and reduce the number of plants you need to plant. You can even get a greenhouse for free with a yard sale. And don’t forget to protect your home. Get a free treehouse for the kids and cover up those windows with something green.
How to Protect Your Plant in Winter?
When plants are not covered by snow and ice during winter, they need shelter. In the greenhouse, they should be protected from light. In the garden, they can be protected by covering them with mulch. These are the basic principles of covering plants during the winter season. You can choose between plastic, wood, or straw to cover your plants. The idea is that they stay warm and dry, and the light is kept out.
The coldest months of the year are also the most important months for your plant. It’s critical to protect your plants from the harsh winter weather. To help you out, here is a list of things you can do to keep your indoor plants safe and healthy during the cold winter months.
Here are top-rated 5 winter gardening hacks by professional gardeners to protect the plantations during winters:
Frost Protection Measures
Frost is very dangerous to the foliar as it freezes the plant tissue cells and causes tissue death. It can be protected by increasing heat irradiation from the soil surface. The best way to protect is by irrigating the beds or ridges a day before the expected frost. The irrigation increases the soil moisture and thus heat irradiation. However, if you cannot do the precautionary irrigation before frosting and frost happen overnight, you can still reduce the damage caused by spraying foliar parts with fresh water early in the morning to prevent further tissue damage and wash off the frozen water droplets.
Covering Hedges & Tender Plants
Unlike, fruit-bearing plants or less abundant ornamentals, hedges and flower beds are larger in quantity and therefore need combined protective coverings. The best suitable cheap materials to cover such plantations are paddy straws, gunny bags, etc. However, polythene sheets of at least 200 mm diameter are used nowadays to covers hedges and flower beds.
For hedges, it is essential to cover the surface which can be done by just spreading polythene sheets on the hedge top-surface and tightening from sides by ropes. However, for the flower bed, the sheet should not touch the plants and it should be kept above some height. For, this purpose stacking can be done using woods, sticks, or stainless steel wires must be used in the garden.
Pruning the Unnecessary
Winters are the most appropriate time to prune the fruit trees as well as hedges. You can add creativity in pruning the bushes and hedges. Numerous shapes can be engraved while pruning the dense plantations.
Fruit trees often produce more fruits on current year growths therefore it is recommended to prune stone fruits and vines during the fall season. It reduces the hectic protective measures as well as adds a variety of views to your garden for next year.
The shape of the fruit trees should be maintained in such a way that maximum sunlight can penetrate during the following flowering and fruiting periods. Moreover, tree structure should be kept upright and gradually expanding.
Winter Vegetables For Your Garden
Numerous vegetables thrive well in winters and can provide sufficiently for the kitchen needs during winters. Most of the gardeners ignore the importance of vegetables, which is not a good sign. The vegetable can be planted as ornamentals as well. Colorful salads, spinach, kale, turnips should be planted in beds and patterns to add life to the garden during the fall season. The followings are vegetables that can grow well during winters:
- Red mizuna
- Rocket
- English and baby spinach
- Kale
- Leeks
- Broad beans
- Spring onions
- Celery
- Carrot
- Beetroot
- Radish
Protect Garden & Patio Furniture
Garden furniture, fixtures, and permanent structures also need extra care during frost winters. The furniture should be covered with protective layers like polythene or cloth sheets to avoid fading off of wood colors. The iron stands or canopies should be painted before the onset of winters to protect them from rust. Single fit covers are also available in the market nowadays which easily fit benches, chairs, tables, etc. These covers should be made of polyacrylic materials that are waterproof.
Hence, We hope you would like our efforts on winter gardening hacks. If you want us to add some more professional hacks please let us know in the comments below. If you like our content please share it with your loved ones.
Place Plants in Frost-Resistant Spots
For plants to survive the winter months, you need to make sure they don’t get too wet. During the colder winter months, you’ll need to use more than a regular plant saucer to keep your houseplant from getting too wet. A better option is to install a frost-resistant pot or to buy a pot that has a built-in tray.
This way, you can place your plant in a pot, and still, have a drainage hole to let water out. You’ll also want to give your plants plenty of light during the winter to help them grow bigger and healthier.
Harden Off Seedlings
Seedlings are very sensitive plants that must be kept moist at all times. If they dry out, they may die. As soon as the weather turns cooler, seedlings must be given a period of hardening off.
This is done by exposing the plants to cooler temperatures gradually over several days. The idea is to give them enough time to acclimate themselves to the cooler temperature, but not too long to cause damage or kill them.
Bring Potted Plants Indoors during frost period
It’s important to keep your plants healthy all year round, but some people don’t realize just how important it is to bring pots of potted plants indoors when the weather turns chilly. If you’ve got a pot of succulents, ferns, or other types of indoor houseplants, here are a few tips to keep them looking their best through the winter months.
- Be sure the pots are well-draining. Many indoor plants need to be watered every day.
- Place pots on a table so they don’t sit directly on the ground.
- Change the potting medium at least once a month. The top layer of soil should be removed and replaced with a fresh, organic potting mix.
- Water your plants thoroughly with a clean garden hose or with a spray bottle.
- Consider adding a heating pad to help keep the leaves of indoor plants warm.
- Feed your plants regularly using specially formulated houseplant food.
- Remove dead flowers and leaves from your plants.
- Repot your plants when they’re about three-fourths grown.
- Water your plants again after repotting.
What factors affect the chances that a plant will die from frost?
The factors that affect the chance that a plant will die from frost are temperature, wind chill, dew point, cloud cover, humidity, and precipitation. When these factors are favorable, the chances of frost are much less. When they’re unfavorable, the chances increase.
Temperature: Plants need to stay above freezing, otherwise, they’ll be dead.
Moisture: When plants get too wet, they can’t breathe.
Wind: Strong winds can blow away leaves and cause more damage.
Sunlight: Plants need light to photosynthesize.
Rain: Plants are sensitive to rain and may not get enough water through their roots to sustain growth.
Frequently Asked Questions || FAQs
How do I Protect my Plants from Cold Temperatures?
You can protect your plants from cold temperatures during the winter by covering the plants and soil with a plastic dome or plastic bag to keep the cold air out. These protective covers should be removed when you bring the plant indoors at the beginning of the growing season in spring.
On the other hand, you can use a mulch to protect your plants from cold temperatures. Moreover, you can build a cold frame or greenhouse for protecting your plants.
How do I protect my Household plants in the winter?
The first thing to remember is that plants need to be protected against frost. Frost can cause problems when it affects a plant’s leaves, roots, stems, or buds. If you live in an area where temperatures are regularly below freezing during the winter, you may want to place your plants on a window sill in a place where they’ll get some direct sunlight.
What to put over plants to protect them?
If you live in an area where there are cold winter nights and a good chance of frost, you might want to consider putting up some type of frost protection on your potted plants. There are several different materials available, including Styrofoam, plastic wrap, Aqueous foam, and cardboard boxes. On the other hand, you can use bed sheets or comforters for covering shrubs, and large plants.
Can I cover my plants with plastic bags?
When your home is full of plants, plastic grocery bags can cause problems. You may have to pay extra for recycling or throw them out. This is a problem because the plastic bag that’s designed to keep produce fresh doesn’t work very well for plants, which need to breathe. They dry out if they’re kept inside a plastic bag. Moreover, you can use plastic pinch to cover the plants but make sure to remove covering in the morning.
How do I keep the soil warm?
Black plastic mulch can help to insulate your garden during the colder months and prevent moisture from penetrating the soil. The mulch also holds in the heat and helps to protect your plants against pests. To use black plastic, you can either put down a thick layer on top of the soil at the beginning of winter.
Conclusion
To grow healthy plants in winter, all you need to do is plan. You need to know what kind of plant you want to grow and how it needs to be protected. The type of plant you choose depends on the amount of light it receives and the temperature range in which it will live. Then, the most important thing to consider is the amount of soil it requires. The less moisture the plant needs, the drier the soil will have to be.
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