Shrubs, Perennials Need Protection From Winter Freeze
Keith Hansen
The recent welcome soaking rain should help prepare trees, shrubs and lawns for the stress of winter. Yes, wintertime can be stressful even on hardy plants.
Drought-stricken plants are more easily damaged by severe cold. If we do not receive periodic episodes of soaking rain, then thoroughly irrigate dry lawns and shrubs every few weeks when the soil dries in the top few inches.
To help protect your plants from severe freezes, mulch tender shrubs and perennials. Chopped up leaves or pine needles make good insulators, plus help conserve moisture and keep weeds at bay. If your yard doesn't have a surplus of pine needles or tree leaves, keep an eye out in your neighborhood.
It is still common practice for large numbers of bags of leaves and pine straw to be placed on the curb for disposal. Not only do leaves make good mulch, but they can also be used to make compost to improve your garden soil.
Pruning of trees can begin as soon as trees are completely dormant. No need to hurry - best time for pruning is late December through February. At least allow all the leaves to come off of deciduous trees before pruning. Crape myrtles should not be pruned at this time of year.
This is a perfect time of year to plant woody landscape plants (trees and shrubs). Winter planting allows newly set out trees and shrubs time to become well established prior to spring growth and summer heat. Camellias are in bud and bloom right now, so it is a good time to visit a nursery and pick out one or more of these choice evergreen plants for your landscape.
Thinking about a living Christmas tree for planting in the yard after the holidays? Here are a few options, some being not so traditional: American holly, Arizona cypress, Deodar cedar, Eastern red cedar, "Foster'' holly, "Nellie R. Stevens'' holly, and Virginia pine (which doesn't make a real attractive tree in the landscape).
Keep the tree in the brightest location while indoors, away from heater vents and the fireplace, and check the soil moisture daily to make sure it is getting enough water. For best results, minimize the time the tree spends indoors, ideally not longer than 3 weeks.
Wintertime is an ideal time to get new spring flower and garden beds ready for planting. Digging and soil preparation can be done now without oppressive heat slowing us down. Soil preparation is best done when the soil is not wet.
Working wet soil can destroy the soil structure, so the soil should be barely moist when digging or rototilling. Organic matter and manure incorporated now will have time to decompose and mellow over the next few months and be ready for late winter or spring planting. If your garden has nematodes, as evidenced by swollen, gnarly roots and poor growth from your plants, then consider planting cereal rye (Elbon rye) as a winter cover crop. Nematodes are trapped and killed in the roots. Till the rye into the soil in later winter (before it goes to seed) so it will have a chance to decay and improve the soil before spring planting.
Keep bird feeders stocked and bird baths filled. Your yard will be bustling with activity all winter from our feathered visitors if you provide water and an assortment of food.
Take advantage of this down time to do some maintenance on your garden tools. Has your mower or weed whacker been acting up? Don't wait until next mowing season to get it tuned up and ready for action. If you are not handy with home repairs, take it to a small-engine repair shop or power equipment supply store so it will be ready to go when you really need it.
Hand tools should have metal parts cleaned and lightly oiled to prevent rusting, and oil wooden handles to prolong their life.
MASTER GARDENER TRAINING
If you are interested in participating in the 2008 Smith County Master Gardener program, including the 2 month training that starts in January, time is running out to send in your application. The deadline for turning in applications is Dec. 14.
The Smith County Master Gardener program is a master volunteer program conducted by Texas Cooperative Extension, whereby people pledge to volunteer a certain number of hours, assisting in Extension horticulture and gardening educational programs, in exchange for an in-depth training in all aspects of home horticulture.
More details, the training schedule and application are available online in the "Programs" area of EastTexasGardening.tamu.edu, or by coming by the Extension office in the Smith County Cotton Belt Building, Room 116, 1517 W. Front St., or by calling the Extension office at 903-590-2980.
Keith Hansen is Smith County Horticulturist with Texas Cooperative Extension. His web page is http://EastTexasGardening.tamu.edu and blog is http://tceblogs.tamu.edu/mt/etg Texas Cooperative Extension educational programs are open to all individuals without regard to race, color, sex, disability, religion, age or national origin.
Drought-stricken plants are more easily damaged by severe cold. If we do not receive periodic episodes of soaking rain, then thoroughly irrigate dry lawns and shrubs every few weeks when the soil dries in the top few inches.
To help protect your plants from severe freezes, mulch tender shrubs and perennials. Chopped up leaves or pine needles make good insulators, plus help conserve moisture and keep weeds at bay. If your yard doesn't have a surplus of pine needles or tree leaves, keep an eye out in your neighborhood.
It is still common practice for large numbers of bags of leaves and pine straw to be placed on the curb for disposal. Not only do leaves make good mulch, but they can also be used to make compost to improve your garden soil.
Pruning of trees can begin as soon as trees are completely dormant. No need to hurry - best time for pruning is late December through February. At least allow all the leaves to come off of deciduous trees before pruning. Crape myrtles should not be pruned at this time of year.
This is a perfect time of year to plant woody landscape plants (trees and shrubs). Winter planting allows newly set out trees and shrubs time to become well established prior to spring growth and summer heat. Camellias are in bud and bloom right now, so it is a good time to visit a nursery and pick out one or more of these choice evergreen plants for your landscape.
Thinking about a living Christmas tree for planting in the yard after the holidays? Here are a few options, some being not so traditional: American holly, Arizona cypress, Deodar cedar, Eastern red cedar, "Foster'' holly, "Nellie R. Stevens'' holly, and Virginia pine (which doesn't make a real attractive tree in the landscape).
Keep the tree in the brightest location while indoors, away from heater vents and the fireplace, and check the soil moisture daily to make sure it is getting enough water. For best results, minimize the time the tree spends indoors, ideally not longer than 3 weeks.
Wintertime is an ideal time to get new spring flower and garden beds ready for planting. Digging and soil preparation can be done now without oppressive heat slowing us down. Soil preparation is best done when the soil is not wet.
Working wet soil can destroy the soil structure, so the soil should be barely moist when digging or rototilling. Organic matter and manure incorporated now will have time to decompose and mellow over the next few months and be ready for late winter or spring planting. If your garden has nematodes, as evidenced by swollen, gnarly roots and poor growth from your plants, then consider planting cereal rye (Elbon rye) as a winter cover crop. Nematodes are trapped and killed in the roots. Till the rye into the soil in later winter (before it goes to seed) so it will have a chance to decay and improve the soil before spring planting.
Keep bird feeders stocked and bird baths filled. Your yard will be bustling with activity all winter from our feathered visitors if you provide water and an assortment of food.
Take advantage of this down time to do some maintenance on your garden tools. Has your mower or weed whacker been acting up? Don't wait until next mowing season to get it tuned up and ready for action. If you are not handy with home repairs, take it to a small-engine repair shop or power equipment supply store so it will be ready to go when you really need it.
Hand tools should have metal parts cleaned and lightly oiled to prevent rusting, and oil wooden handles to prolong their life.
MASTER GARDENER TRAINING
If you are interested in participating in the 2008 Smith County Master Gardener program, including the 2 month training that starts in January, time is running out to send in your application. The deadline for turning in applications is Dec. 14.
The Smith County Master Gardener program is a master volunteer program conducted by Texas Cooperative Extension, whereby people pledge to volunteer a certain number of hours, assisting in Extension horticulture and gardening educational programs, in exchange for an in-depth training in all aspects of home horticulture.
More details, the training schedule and application are available online in the "Programs" area of EastTexasGardening.tamu.edu, or by coming by the Extension office in the Smith County Cotton Belt Building, Room 116, 1517 W. Front St., or by calling the Extension office at 903-590-2980.
Keith Hansen is Smith County Horticulturist with Texas Cooperative Extension. His web page is http://EastTexasGardening.tamu.edu and blog is http://tceblogs.tamu.edu/mt/etg Texas Cooperative Extension educational programs are open to all individuals without regard to race, color, sex, disability, religion, age or national origin.
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