After all of the cold months, most garden lovers are probably ready to start thinking about the coming planting season. The good news is that there are projects that can be done during the winter in preparation for the coming spring.
The winter is the perfect time to begin planning out your flower beds. For those people who subscribe to plant catalogs, it is likely that your mailbox will be filled with the new catalogs shortly after the first of the year. Seed and planting catalogs are full of ideas, so go through the catalogs and make a wish list of potential plants for the coming spring. Once you have done a little research on the plants from your wish list to make sure that they are well suited for your hardiness zone, soil type, and level of shade, you can begin purchasing seeds, bulbs, and plants as early as January or February. This is important to remember, because there are limited supplies for many varieties of plants, and they are likely to sell out by the beginning of March.
Winter is also an ideal time to get pruning out of the way. However, make sure that you do not prune any flowering trees or shrubs that get early spring blooms. In many cases the buds that will bloom in the spring have already formed, or the plants may only bloom on old wood. For azalea, forsythia, lilac, rhododendron, weigela, viburnum, and others, you must wait until just after they have bloomed before you can prune them. Winter is also the perfect time to prune fruit trees. Get out in the yard and take advantage of a sunny winter day to get your shrubs and trees pruned before spring.
Some of the other things that gardeners can do during the winter in preparation for the coming spring:
-Plant bulbs that will flower in the spring if the ground is not frozen
-Clean and sharpen all garden tools
-Transplant, divide, and root cutting of indoor houseplants
-Start an indoor herb garden
-Begin growing annual flower and vegetable seeds in a sunny window inside in March. This will give you a jump on the spring growing season
-Grow bulb flowers indoors, to get beautiful indoor perennials
Carrying out some winter gardening projects can be a great way to prepare for the spring, as well as get into the mindset of a warmer season. This can be an uplifting way to get through the cold and depressing winter months.
The winter is the perfect time to begin planning out your flower beds. For those people who subscribe to plant catalogs, it is likely that your mailbox will be filled with the new catalogs shortly after the first of the year. Seed and planting catalogs are full of ideas, so go through the catalogs and make a wish list of potential plants for the coming spring. Once you have done a little research on the plants from your wish list to make sure that they are well suited for your hardiness zone, soil type, and level of shade, you can begin purchasing seeds, bulbs, and plants as early as January or February. This is important to remember, because there are limited supplies for many varieties of plants, and they are likely to sell out by the beginning of March.
Winter is also an ideal time to get pruning out of the way. However, make sure that you do not prune any flowering trees or shrubs that get early spring blooms. In many cases the buds that will bloom in the spring have already formed, or the plants may only bloom on old wood. For azalea, forsythia, lilac, rhododendron, weigela, viburnum, and others, you must wait until just after they have bloomed before you can prune them. Winter is also the perfect time to prune fruit trees. Get out in the yard and take advantage of a sunny winter day to get your shrubs and trees pruned before spring.
Some of the other things that gardeners can do during the winter in preparation for the coming spring:
-Plant bulbs that will flower in the spring if the ground is not frozen
-Clean and sharpen all garden tools
-Transplant, divide, and root cutting of indoor houseplants
-Start an indoor herb garden
-Begin growing annual flower and vegetable seeds in a sunny window inside in March. This will give you a jump on the spring growing season
-Grow bulb flowers indoors, to get beautiful indoor perennials
Carrying out some winter gardening projects can be a great way to prepare for the spring, as well as get into the mindset of a warmer season. This can be an uplifting way to get through the cold and depressing winter months.