
Looks like we’re set for a freezing cold end to November and start of December this year.
So how can you protect your garden plants as we head to at least a week of sub-zero night time temperatures?
It’s probably worth noting that unless your garden is filled with exotics or tender plants, you should find the majority of your herbaceous perennials and shrubs, don’t actually require winter protection at all. In fact, many of these plants benefit from the cold winter reset as an essential part of their life cycle.
Plus the winter chill plays a crucial role in eliminating pests and diseases that thrive during warmer weather. Covering plants can sometimes do more harm than good, providing a cozy habitat for these baddies, giving them a head start in spring.
As general good practice though mulching is a simple yet effective way to insulate the soil and protect plant roots from freezing temperatures. Apply a layer of mulch, such as compost or well-rotted manure, around the base of your plants to protect them over winter . Find out more about mulch in my last blog post
You may also want to wrap less hardy plants to keep the worst of the cold off. The best material for this job is garden fleece. Also known as horticultural fleece, is a lightweight, breathable fabric, which can help trap warmer air as well as preventing wind damage and direct frost damage.
Potted plants, can be more vulnerable to cold, especially if there is a prolonged period of below freezing weather. Often it’s the combination of water-logged soil and freezing temperatures that does the damage, rather than the cold alone. To protect plants in pots:
Improve drainage by elevating them with chocks or pieces of wood
If possible provide some shelter to prevent drenching and of course reduce or stop any watering you might have been doing
If you have the flexibility to move containers, placing them against a south-facing wall provides additional protection
Avoid Bubble Wrap and Non-Permeable Plastics. Water can still seep into the growing medium, and the trapped moisture may freeze, causing more harm than good. As mentioned above, garden fleece is better for wrapping.
Finally any particularly tender plants such as pelargoniums, cannas and some salvias really do need to be stored in a frost-free environment for winter.
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