No Hay!

Who is this crazy gal?  What am I talking about?

Winterizing your gardens, plants and all outdoor “play areas”…

We live in New England which boasts 4 very distinctive seasons.

And winter here is bold!  The ground is covered in snow, and the only green you see is that of the evergreens spotting the woods behind the house.  It’s cold and everything, your plants, the animals and you hibernate for 4-5 months.

Nothing wrong with that!  I love the time it gives me to focus on working indoors; cooking, cleaning, going through photos, diy projects (not anymore!), etc.

But, it’s bittersweet putting your gardens to bed.  It’s sad to think that you won’t be seeing those vibrant poppies out your kitchen window or that you won’t be snacking on the random green bean as you harvest your vegetable crop.

However, it’s a relief to know that you won’t be pulled between being outdoors or indoors.  The choice just simply is not yours to make!

Winterizing your outdoor living space is part of the transition in New England from fall to winter.  Right about now, most of this work has been completed.  You’ve brought in your patio furniture, your BBQ is all covered up, the lawn has been combed for any loose toys and the garden…

Well, first I pulled up all the old dead annuals, the tomato plants, zucchini, cukes, pepper, basil, etc.  Then the soil was tilled, compost was added until combined with the existing dirt.  And finally, my garlic was planted.  Yup, in November!  Each clove is planted about 1 inch beneath the soil, covered up with the soil and then the entire area is blanketed with a thick stack of straw.

Do not use hay to protect your plants for the winter!  Not around your strawberry plants or lavender.  No, no, no.  Hay contains weed seeds…bad, bad hay.  No fun to introduce more weeds to your garden!

Straw works well to cover the garlic bed, but even straw isn’t the best bet for your berry plants, and any other delicate flowers, herbs or shrubs you may want to protect from the harsh winter elements.  Straw can get  moldy.  Yuck!

The kindest thing you can do for yourself and your plants is to use wood chips around their root system!

That simple.  That’s it!

And now, it’s time to let everyone hibernate…can’t wait to see all those little buds of green in the spring…

For more info on winter insulating and mulching of your plants visit here…