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Get Your Flower Garden Ready For Winters

By Anvi Mehta

Winter is approached and the wind is now getting cold and dry. There is a loss in moisture everywhere around us. Our skin is also becoming dry and losing all the moisture. In the same way, our flower garden is also facing dry chilly winds and losing the freshness and dampness from the plants and flowers. The whole garden starts looking pale and life less due to low humidity. There are no fresh and dew washed flowers making your garden look amazing.

For winters you must take care of your garden just like you would of yourself. Each plant is not strong enough to survive in the low temperatures and hence most of the plants are susceptible to damage. In this case, a lot of precautions should be taken prior the onset of winters till the season ends. If you own a flower garden, you should be more careful during winters. Flower gardening requires more time and care input.

Get Your Flower Garden Ready For Winters

There are many tips and measures that you can follow to get your flower garden ready for winters. A few important tips are mentioned below:-

1.Starve the plants - As rude that it may sound; it is equally beneficial to stop providing flowering plants with extra fertilizers and growth boosters at the start of the winters. This avoids and prevents the growth of new flower blossoms. This is done because the first winter freeze is going to dry the flower and any new flower growth would anyway be a waste. Flower gardening does require a lot of care but this is one harsh method of getting your flowers ready for winter.

2.Change the Mulch - Before the onset of winters, change the mulch layer below your flower beds. Rejuvenate your flower beds with a new layer of organic waste and leftovers of other plants. It would keep your flower bed warm and prevent it from rodents and other insects. Mulch beds would also keep the soil layer moisturized to some extent, thus, keeping the flower bed damp.

3.Cut the Dry - After the first freeze, cut all the dried stems and flowers from the plants. This would help in stimulating and rejuvenating new and fresh growth. The dried stems and flowers do not help in growth and the plant remains stagnant. But, you should never cut the dried parts before the first sweep of winter. Always remember this, as winters are going to dry the plant to some extent, always trim the plants after the winter winds strike the first time.

4.Wrap it up - Wrap the flowering plants using gunny bags or plastics to save them from the withering cold. With the support of wooden stakes around the flowering plant, wrap a gunny to the plant, leaving enough space for ventilation. This is one essential to get your flowers ready for winters. This method is more often used for roses as they are very vulnerable to cold. Flower gardening is a chaotic job as every flowering plant has different requirements and tolerance.

5.Use the leaves - Plants give up a lot of dried leaves during the winters. Instead of considering them as a waste, collect these leaves and mix them with mulch. The mulch layer with the dried leaves can be used as a mold around flowering plants to keep them warm and save them from the freezing colds.

Flower gardening is a little tough but the results are beautiful. A little extra care is needed during winters but that is totally worth it.

Story first published: Friday, November 29, 2013, 13:50 [IST]
Read more about: gardening flowers