PACIFIC-NORTHWEST - cold-weather gardening - Brief Article

Flower & Garden Magazine, Jan, 2000 by Marianne Binetti

As fall firms up into winter, it is time to make some changes in the garden. Move potted plants you want to protect from freezing under the eaves of the house or some other spot where they will be protected from the deluge of winter rains. Clay pots that you'd like to save from cracking and chipping should also be stored where they can remain dry. If you don't have wide eaves but want to safely over-winter pots of perennials and bulbs, cover a picnic or garden table with a waterproof table cloth and push your large pots under this makeshift winter shelter. It is the freezing and thawing action of water in clay pots that makes them crack and the water logged soil that makes bulbs and perennials rot in our mild winter climate.

Prune tall roses to keep them from whipping about in the winter winds, and while you're at it, clean up all the debris and leaves from roses that suffered from insect and disease problems. The goal here is to take away any winter accommodations that insect eggs and disease spores will try to use.

January is storm watch month, and if a heavy, wet snow dumps onto your landscape, leave this insulating blanket on the perennials but use a broom to gently remove the weight of the snow from the branches of the trees and shrubs.