We all know it’s the toughest time of the year for our beloved winter gardens, but fear not, we at eDecks have compiled this handy list of winter garden top tips to help your garden flourish throughout the coming months.
1. Spruce Up Your Garden Pathway!
Yes folks, it’s time to dig out that tub of elbow grease and find your trusty old stiff brush, as we recommend getting to grips with that garden path and restoring it to it’s former glory with a good old fashioned sweep. Use this time to clear out any growing moss, lichen and weeds that have taken root during the year and have that path looking spic and span for the forth coming new year. A clean path to the New Year.
eDecks tip: Use rocksalt to keep all paths clear and safe for when the ice and snow arrives!
2. Can You Dig It? We Recommend You Do!
Provided your soil isn’t waterlogged or frozen, we recommend giving your beds a good clearing out. Dig and fork the soil to loosen it up, allowing you to clear out any weeds and look into adding compost or manure to start the process of building up the soil structure. This will also help to create a moisture and food reserve for your plants and vegetables.
eDecks tip: Brighten up your garden with winter bedding, such as sweet peas and pansies.
3. Let the Pruning Commence!
Yes, it’s time to get out those pruning shears and start trimming back those bushes and trees for the winter. We recommend starting off by clearing all dead and diseased branches, then moving onto removing any buds facing into each other. This makes sure you won’t have any damage as the buds begin to flower later in the year. Finally, it’s always good to look at reducing any particularly long branches, we suggest cutting back a third of their current length.
eDecks top tip: Make sure your pruning shears are sharp to avoid crushing and tearing areas, as this can lead to disease and frost damage.
4. Don’t Have a Compost Bin? Start Now!
Winter can be the perfect time to kickstart your compost bin and start feeding back the nutrients from your garden waste, right back into your plants, trees and shrubs. The trees may look a tad bare right now, but it’s a good chance to take advantage of all those fallen leaves which can be gathered up and added to your brand new compost pile!
eDecks top tip: Buy the right composter for your gardening needs and be sure to pick up one of our ‘one size fits all’ covers!
5. Don’t Forget our Feathered Friends!
Yip, our last and final tip is obviously the most important as we strongly recommend you provide for the birds needs during what can be a difficult time for our flying friends. Turn this into an event with the kids, laying out food and making sure that water supplies are kept fresh.
eDecks top tip: Water baths keep freezing over? Place a floating ball on the surface to stop the water freezing… and hey, if it does freeze over, simply remove the ball to leave a gap in the ice!
Winter Garden – Further Help & Advice
Preparing your winter garden can be a labour of love, however, armed with the right tools and tricks, it will pay dividends in the later months. For more top tips on taking care of your winter garden and more, why not visit our blog on extending the life of your plants in winter?