The gardening season is winding down, and it’s time to prepare your garden for winter. Take the following gardening tips into consideration to make this the best year yet for your flowers, vegetables and more.
Whether you are a gardener or just starting out, this gardening tip of the week will help keep your garden in top shape.
Hellebores
Hellebores, also called Lenten roses, are a classic and beautiful early spring flower. They are frost-resistant and shade-loving evergreens that require minimal maintenance.
They come in a variety of colors and bloom sizes, making them the ideal plant for shady areas. They’re a great choice for gardeners of all experience levels.
A little care will go a long way to helping these feisty plants thrive. Check the soil for pH, and add lime if necessary to help maintain their neutral or alkaline balance.
In the winter, these frost-resistant shade plants need a bit of cleanup: prune any old or damaged foliage back to the base in late winter or early spring before they start growing again.
They do self-seed, but be sure to thin out any new seedlings close to mature plants. You may get unexpected hybrids if you grow multiple types of hellebores in close proximity.
Deadheading
Deadheading is a simple and often overlooked gardening tip that can help extend the life of your plants. By removing faded blooms, you can encourage plants to produce more flowers and seeds throughout one or more seasons.
A few minutes spent snipping dead flower heads can pay big dividends, helping you extend the blooming season and keep plants looking fresh all summer long. Moreover, it can be a fun activity for some gardeners, a time honored tradition or even a relaxing way to spend time outside.
Deadheading helps control the growth of self-seeding plants like foxglove, hollyhock or columbine, as well as those that are biennials and can’t flower again until their second year. It also prevents unwanted seed pods from forming, which can look unsightly and cause disease to spread.
Lawn Fertilizing
Whether you’re planting a new garden or simply trying to get a greener lawn, it’s important to fertilize your yard at the proper time and in the right way. Keeping your grass healthy will ensure it looks its best, stands up to weather and survives kids’ football games, so it is well worth the effort to make sure you’re doing it right!
The first step to getting your lawn fertilized is figuring out what kind of fertilizer it needs. Having a soil test can help you understand which nutrients it needs and how much of them it has already got in the soil.
Once you’ve figured out which type of fertilizer your lawn needs, it’s time to find a time when it will be most effective. Fertilizing mid-summer is best for warm-season grasses, while applying in the fall is ideal for cool-season types.
Watering
Watering is the single most important activity you can do in your garden, both to ensure healthy plants and a successful harvest. Understanding how, when and where to water can make all the difference between a happy, healthy plant and a sickly, unhappy one.
Generally, most plants do well when they receive about 1 inch of water each week. This amount can vary based on the climate of your region.
Rain is also important to keep your garden hydrated, but be sure to use a rain gauge so you can monitor weekly rainfall levels.
Vegetable gardens, in particular, require a lot of water. They’re in active growth mode, absorbing more water than do plants in seasons of dormancy.