Winter is a needed break from trying to keep up with the crazy speed of the summer garden. It is a good time to stop and reflect. It might be helpful to keep a garden journal and record successes and failures, take notes on books read and webinars attended, and maul over ambitious ideas for the future.
Check plants during winter drought periods and spot water as necessary.
Check for erosion and fix problems as they appear.
November 15 to March 15 is the best time to prune most trees and shrubs.
Most bare-rooted trees and shrubs should be planted in February or early March.
Burn where appropriate.
Mulch where needed to reduce weeding and maintain moisture.
Scout out evergreen invasives like euonymus for removal.
Start plants indoors or in cold frames
Make improvements and repairs to hardscapes
When the weather is pleasant and it is too nice to stay inside there are plenty of garden chores to do outside. Winter is good time to repair paths, add more wood chips to a muddy spot, dig trenches to divert water, make the stepping stones level. When the ground is bare is an opportunity to rethink the garden layout, add or move paths, create intimate places to sit, and expand beds. As my trees get bigger I’m constantly moving paths away from intruding branches or picking a branch to trim back. In the fall my sculptures and attractive rocks tend to get buried so winter is a time to find them and give them a spot to be better seen. Interesting logs make a nice garden focal point but they gradually decay and must be replaced, a good wintertime project.
On the days that are not so nice I like to critically access the views out my windows. With the bare bones of the garden showing I can judge if a branch is blocking the view or maybe a tall plant should be moved to the back. Maybe a screen can be added to hide an old fence or electric box. Keeping the window views attractive makes being indoors much more bearable. I like to watch the birds perch out on the tree branches waiting their turn at the feeder or bathing in the bubbler.
All winter long is a time to work on seeds. First they must be cleaned. Pick out which sees are needed for the spring garden and get them stratified. All other seeds can be packaged up and given away to friends or at swaps. Order the plants needed early before nurseries sell out.
Another winter project is to maintain all the bird houses. Invasive birds should be evicted. Entrances may need to be repaired if a squirrel or woodpecker damaged them. Build more bird houses, bat house, raptor boxes. This is also a good time to thoroughly clean all bird feeders and replace the damaged ones.
When it is above freezing I look for maintenance of the rain barrels and watering systems. The squirrels like to chew on my rain barrels so there are always holes to patch up. All the filters and screens and overflows need to be cleaned out. Time to clean the gutters too. Hopefully, all the hoses were put away before winter but if not do it now.
Gardening tools can be cleaned, oiled, and sharpened now. Throw out all the irreparable broken tools and give away the ones that haven't been used in awhile. Repair the tools you can or send them off to be repaired at the hardware store or their manufacturer. Look through all the old pots in storage and get rid of the ugly ones. Order potting soil, mulch, woodchips, straw, or whatever other materials needed.
Notice that I have not mentioned anything about cutting down dead plant stems or raking leaves. Save these tasks for the spring. In the winter the cover is needed by the birds and insects to survive the winter. Removing winter yard waste kills many insects like butterflies and deprives birds of places to hide from the cold and forage for seeds.
The best cure for cabin fever is to get out and start working on the spring garden. By the time all the winter maintenance chores are done spring will already be here. While out there keep an eye out for the winter blooming witchhazel and it’s tiny pollinators. Some butterflies like the morning cloak overwinter as adults and can be seen flying on sunny days.
