Winterize your garden and prepare for next growing season

An impending chill signals the coming of winter, which begs the question: how should you prepare your plants to withstand harsh conditions?

After speaking with some experts, one piece of advice rings true: leave them be!

Meagan Provencher, the Senior Landscape Designer at Wasco Nursery & Garden Center in St. Charles, has tended to her own garden for years and she stresses this. “Going into winter, it is best to not prune anything, not cut anything down, (or) do any major trimming or hedging. Just let them go into winter on their own,” says Provencher.

While your plants may look in need of help, they are actually able to sense the change in the season and prepare.

This includes perennials, which bloom in the warm months and die in the cold months. Your purple coneflowers, black eyed susan, and wood grass in particular have seed heads that small nonmigratory birds can eat from, serving a crucial purpose to your backyard ecosystem. With this in mind, it is best to let your outdoor plants be.

However, not all plants are meant for the chill of Midwestern winters. When bringing tropical plants indoors, Owner of GROW Geneva Laura Pettit-Brancaleon says that finding prime lighting is key. “When I bring my plants back inside for the winter, I put them in the brightest spot I have for three weeks,” says Pettit-Brancaleon. “It helps ease that transition back inside.”

Also, make sure to check these plants for any extra living things. To get rid of these pests, hose your plant down and leave the plant in a “quarantine space,” as Pettit-Brancaleon puts it. This way, those critters are able to find someplace else to live and your plant can adjust to its new home.

The colder months will also leave your plants thirsty, both indoors and outdoors. They will still need to be watered well after you turn your sprinklers off for the season. “We often forget that the plants are still actively growing… The soil is warm well into Christmas time,” Provencher reminds us.

While outdoor plants don’t need to be watered every day, make sure to tend to them at least once a month. For indoor plants, cut back on watering and move them closer to the window.

Another way to help your indoor plants thrive is to install a sun lamp or humidifier. Your houseplants “are typically in greenhouses with a registered humidity of about 80%, and we bring them into our cold, dark, dry houses,” explains Pettit-Brancaleon. “Humidifiers would be optimal, they would love it… and honestly, you’ll love a humidifier too, it’s so dry in the winter!”

Plants deserve plenty of appreciation during this change of season, but so do you. “Fall is a nice time to sit back and reflect on the garden: what worked [and] what didn’t work,” states Provencher. Your garden is a labor of love, and it will be waiting to bloom for you again in just a few short months.