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"Thank heavens the sun has gone in
And I don't have to go out and enjoy it!"
~ Logan Pearsall Smith
Preparing For Spring.
Some will say that this is the best month of the year to prepare your garden for winter: I beg to differ. It is spring that we are preparing for, as it is the garden in spring that we look forward to returning AFTER the long cold Canadian winter.
Let's not get hung up on semantics. I spend a lot of time in November prepping the garden for my rest from it... and at the end of it all the Grey Cup (to be played in Edmonton November 28th) is my reward.
So let's get started: the 'wall of winter' is near and nearer still for readers up north and on the great Canadian Prairies...!!
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Spring Prep Checklist
- Lawn. Cut at normal height (2 1/2 inches or so) and after your last cut, clean the cutting deck (a Mark's Choice mower scraper works well at this...), apply a coating of oil, run the gas dry, change the oil in the crankcase and sharpen the mower blade. There, night night - see you next spring mower! Still time to apply CIL Fall Lawn Fertilizer.
- Roses. The only roses that need 'winterizing' are the hybrid teas, floribundas, grandifloras and miniatures. Hardy shrub roses are, well, hardy. Forget about them. Climbers for the most part will be fine nested as they are against the wall of your home or your fence. All of the aforementioned roses need to be hilled up with soil or triple mix about 60 cm high. A rose 'collar' works well for this. Mark's Choice Flower & Vegetable Soil (item # 5053-695) will do the job best of all due to its' porosity and natural goodness.
- Apply Wilt-Pruf to all broad leafed evergreens like boxwood, taxus (yews), rhododendrons and the like. This is an 'anti-desiccant' that will hold moisture in the leaves over the extremely dry days of mid winter. (Question: how dry is it? About 10 to 12% moisture on a minus 10 day. The Sahara desert is about 22% humidity any day of the year.) If you have any Wilt-Pruf left over apply it to your cut Christmas tree to help hold the needles in place and reduce the fire hazard.
- Finish planting all of your spring flowering Holland bulbs.
- Prevent mice, rabbits and rats from eating the bark on your young fruit trees by applying a spiral shaped plastic protector to the main stem of the tree. Same goes for non-fruiting trees like crabapples and flowering plums. When your trees have matured with a diameter of about 8 cm or so there is no longer need to protect them over winter in this way.
- Water all of the evergreens around the foundation of your home. The ice that forms there is great insulation for their roots. Then put away your garden hose.
- Leaves? Put them on the garden and in your compost. See last month's newsletter.
- Finished tomato and annual plants: pull them and put in your compost.
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When visiting friends during the holiday season it is always appreciated to bring a small gift. During this busy time of year it is very important to say 'thank you' to those who go out of their way to entertain of those who you simply want to acknowledge as being special!
I am the emcee at this very special annual evening of entertainment: a wonderful fundraiser for Participation House of Markham.
The Toronto Tree Portrait 2011 Calendar, with photographs by Rodrigo Moreno and tree poetry compiled and introduced by Sonia Day is available now.
"A remedy I have used to stop slugs eating Hostas: 
Green Tomato Relish