Getting Ready For A Winter’s Nap
Submitted by Joan Regan
Fall came way too quickly, but my garden is in good shape to go to sleep for its long winter’s nap. I have most of the fun knick knacks put away and since I changed from a fall clean up to just spring, it is ready to go. Just my Mini Hostas are going on the ground in their pots – probably don’t need to – they sure are tough little guys.
I have been just walking away the last few years and I do NOT notice any difference in any of my plants. Nothing gets cut back and nothing raked (just a quick tidy up on the paths). Tossed out the last of the frozen orange peels to get any slugs still lurking about and it is “nighty night” till the spring.
I had a few slugs on the bottom of some containers this past rainy summer so I cut some heavier cardboard to fit under their bottoms and sat them on it and it seems to be working. Still getting the drainage but keeping the ugly slimies out. The fight goes on… and on and on.
TOOLS: I find taking a bit of time come fall to give them all a quick wipe gives me clean tools come spring when I will be so busy with other things to take the time then. I have an old plastic pail with an old oily rag in it and all my hand tools go in it – all wiped down with another oily rag and placed handles up and then covered and put on a shelf in my garden shed. They’re good to go till spring. A lot of my tools are either old hand-me-downs, complete with memories, or new ones purchased when I got the Gardening Bug back in the nineties – they are good ones with all new memories.
I do get some questions “Do I cover all my containers with a tarp for the winter?” Do I put the containers in the garage or a shed? First of all, I have over 200 plants in containers now and have no intentions of moving them all twice a year, nor do I have the strength anymore. So it’s “if ya snooze, ya lose”. Just the tough ones come back – and they all seem to be tough. If not they’re compost (tough love over here on the corner). And besides, would Mother Nature go to all that trouble? Hell no.
So the fall clean up is almost finished and all the fun stuff put away and it’s on to my house plants. Don’t know why they are still speaking to me when they are so neglected. My Xmas Cactus is so confused she is blooming now… well two are… the other one is behaving and waiting for the jingle bells I guess… and that is coming soon enough.
Happy Fall Gardening,
Joni
jpregan@amtelecom.net 519 596 2389
