Even though winter doesn’t reach its peak until the new year, the falling temperatures are already causing problems for many garden residents: sensitive plants such as roses and camellias, young trees and many hardy potted plants are particularly susceptible to frost damage and must be protected from the increasing cold . The same applies to sensitive garden furniture and rust-prone garden tools that should not spend the winter outdoors – and if they do, then only with appropriate protection. The tips and tricks that will help your garden survive the cold season unscathed are summarized below.
You should mow your lawn for the last time this year at the end of November at the latest – after that it no longer makes sense, as you may even harm it if it has to survive the winter if it is cut too short. It’s best to set your lawnmower higher so that your lawn can catch enough sunlight even in the cold season and doesn’t provide a target for uninvited guests such as moss. And even if you think you need to fertilize the grass again before the cold spell, experts advise you to do the opposite. The fact is: the nutrients can no longer be absorbed by the grass and therefore only end up in the groundwater. Before the actual onset of winter, you should also collect the remaining leaves so that the lawn gets enough light.
Most perennials in the garden survive the winter without any problems and don’t even need to be cut back. However, this does not apply to sensitive plants such as roses: their turbidity may only be shortened by a third to protect them from frost. You should then arm it against the cold with the help of bark mulch or spruce branches. Hardy potted plants, on the other hand, can, as the name suggests, be left outdoors all year round – but they still need a little (frost) protection. You can make the plants winter-proof with appropriate protective materials such as bubble wrap, garden fleece or Styrofoam sheets: You wrap the plant with the film, you provide all-round protection with the fleece and the Styrofoam is pushed under the bucket. It is then best to place the plants in a place protected from the wind, for example in front of the wall of the house. Non-hardy and Mediterranean potted plants should definitely overwinter in the cellar or garage, otherwise their root balls could freeze.
Before you dispose of the last leaves, you can also cover your beds with them – but first you should cut off any dead or wilted plant residue. If there are no leaves left, you can also cover your flower and vegetable beds with garden fleece. However, fresh compost is even better: it can mature over the winter and offers the plants an ideal breeding ground when they develop new shoots in spring. If you have an herb garden, you can also use pine or spruce branches to protect the herbs from the cold. If you want early bloomers (including crocuses, tulips or daffodils) to overwinter in your flower bed, you must plant the tubers in the ground before the first frost. Then you can usually survive the winter without any problems.
A rule of thumb is that trees and shrubs should be cut back in October. However, since the first real frost is still a long time coming, you still have the opportunity to do so: By trimming branches and twigs that are too long, leafless, dead or diseased from below, new shoots will grow back better and faster. With fruit trees, it is important to cut off the old branches directly on the trunk – ideally always above younger shoots. If you want to cut back your hedge, you can thin it out and make it smaller. As soon as the first frost sets in, it is important to stop trimming your trees and shrubs as the interfaces will no longer close. You can additionally protect young trees with a coat of lime; alternatively, a jute coating or a reed mat can also help against frost.
In winter, the fish retreat to the garden pond: more precisely, in the cold season they go into a kind of hibernation state so that their metabolism slows down and they can survive without food and little oxygen until the next spring. The animals normally stay in the deeper layers of water so that they are not in any danger if the pond freezes in the upper layers. However, if the water freezes completely, the fish can suffocate in it. You can minimize the risk by placing an ice preventer on the water surface over the winter, possibly with sinking clips (in the case of permanent frost) – this ensures that the pond cannot freeze completely. This is made possible by a Styrofoam ring, which has an insulating effect on the water.
If you have an outside water connection in the garden, you should protect the pipes from the first frost by emptying them completely – otherwise there is a risk that residual water in them will freeze and expand, causing the pipes to burst. It’s best to close the main valve to the outside pipes over the winter, then turn on the tap in the garden so that the remaining water can flow out. To make sure that there is no more water in the pipes, you can open the drainage valve in the second step to collect the remaining water.
The devices must also be winterized so that they do not rust. Here it is not enough to simply store lawn mowers etc. in a dry place – instead, the garden tools should be thoroughly cleaned before winter sets in. Important: Unplug electrical appliances first before removing loose debris such as leaves, grass and soil with your hands or a small broom. The first rust stains, however, are combated with steel wool and resin stains with mineral spirits. You can find further frost protection measures in the relevant manuals for the respective devices, if you still have them.
Last but not least, the garden furniture should not be ignored. Even if most materials are quite winter-proof, such as tables and chairs made of rattan or aluminum, high sub-zero temperatures and sunlight cause problems for them in the long term. It is best for the garden furniture if you store it in a cool and dry place over the winter – as wood in particular doesn’t like too much heat when it spends the rest of the year in the garden. A cellar or garage are the ideal places for your garden furniture to survive the winter undamaged. Alternatively, you can also use a special cover for outdoors that is waterproof and weatherproof.
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