David Hobson, In the Garden
Time to clean things up before winter arrives
I suppose it’s time to think about bedtime for the garden. No need to panic. Do nothing and the garden will still be there in spring, albeit a little messy. That’s one of the main reasons to clean things up.
Typically the question is what to do about perennials — cut them down or leave them be? Not all perennials are the same.
The leaves of soft fleshy ones like hosta will flop down and lay on the ground, providing a little winter cover for the plant before eventually breaking down. They are not the most welcoming sight if they’re beside the front door, so removing the leaves before they get messy is worthwhile. If your hostas have been bothered by slugs, it’s a good time to spritz the soil with an ammonia solution, now and in early spring to kill off slugs and slug eggs. Ten parts water to one part ammonia is the most commonly suggested ratio.
Woody stemmed perennials can be left in place as the seed heads provide food for birds, plus the stems will trap insulating snow. Roses are best cut back to about knee height after the canes have turned brown. Some of mine are as tall as me and I don’t want to get whipped into shape by a rose cane should I happen to be out snowshoeing through my backyard. The real reason is to prevent damage to the bud union in windy weather. Pile compost or fresh soil about 20 centimetres high around the base of tea roses and similar roses. Remove in spring as they begin to sprout again.
Evergreen shrubs, including azaleas and rhododendrons need lots of water before freeze up, especially newly planted ones. We often have a few good rains before freeze up, but it can be deceiving. Evergreens lose moisture through their needles or leaves and can’t replace it, so make sure they don’t go into winter thirsty.
For many years it was the fashion to wrap every evergreen in the garden with burlap, but it really isn’t necessary. Freshly planted ones can use the protection, as can those in an exposed location, say where the wind whips around the corner of the house or shed. If they’re subject to salt spray near a road, a screen or wrapping will help, otherwise most will survive just fine if well watered.
There’s still time to plant spring flowering bulbs and these, too, need to be well watered.
Summer flowering bulbs like glads, dahlias, tuberous begonias, and calla and canna lilies need to be dug and stored if you haven’t done so already. Not all are stored in the same manner. They don’t need to be washed, but clean off any soil and discard any that are spongy, damaged, or ravaged by insects.
After the foliage of glads has dried, cut it off and shake any loose soil from the corms. Extra bulblets, or cormlets I suppose, can be removed and stored for future production. Cure the main corms on wooden flats or trays in an airy location for a couple of weeks, then after curing, remove the shrivelled old corms from the base of the new ones and discard. Store them in a cool dark place with good air circulation at a temperature of about 5 C. Mesh onion bags are ideal.
The rhizomes of canna and calla lilies can be treated much the same as glads, but I find dahlias a little trickier. They grow from a tuberous root that either dries up or rots if the moisture level doesn’t suit them. I’ve had most success when I’ve stored them in slightly damp peat moss in an unsealed plastic bag. Again, store in a cool dark place, but occasionally check on the condition. Begonia tubers can be wrapped in newspaper as I find the paper picks up just enough moisture to preserve them. They prefer a slightly warmer storage temperature at around 10 C.
My personal winter storage temperature is around 20 C, but I’m not quite ready yet. I still have lots of last minute puttering to do, maybe weeks if we’re lucky. Weeds are still growing.
