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Monthly Gardening Tips / December
Planning:
- Use garden notes, photos and sketches to
assess areas which need plants
- Determine types and quantities of plants
to order
- Begin to order plants from seed and nursery
catalogues
Chores and Maintenance:
- After ground freezes, mulch perennial and
bulb planting beds. The mulch will prevent
heaving during the alternate freeze/thaw cycle
- Tie and support evergreen shrubs to avoid
breakage from winter snow
- Continue to provide burlap windbreaks for
boxwood and broad-leaved evergreens unitl
ground freezes
- Complete protection of trees from mouse
damage with wire mesh trunk guards
- Continue to protect shrubs from deer with
burlap or netting
- Avoid the use of salt to melt snow as it
is toxic to most plants. Use sawdust, sand
or cat litter
- Keep bird feeders filled throughout winter
Pruning/Fertilizing:
- Prune evergreen branches to use in holiday
decorating
- Continue to rejuvenate overgrown shrubs
as weather permits, until new growth begins
in spring
Indoors:
- Keep newly purchased Christmas trees in
a bucket of water in a cool place
- Set up Christmas tree in a reservoir stand.
Cut on a slant about 1" above existing cut
for optimum water absorption
- Be sure to keep reservoir filled and place
tree in the coolest part of the room
- Sterilize the tree stand with a solution
of boiling water, vinegar, and household bleach
after use
- When buying houseplants in winter be sure
to wrap them well for the trip home. This
prevents the foliage from freezing and protects
tropicals from drafts
- Give houseplants as much light as possible
as days grow shorter
- Hold off on fertilizing indoor plants until
spring
- Provide houseplants with increased humidity;
mist often or place plants over a tray of
moist pebbles
- Continue to plant prepared bulbs for indoor
forcing
- As houseplants grow more slowly during winter,
increase the time between waterings but do
not cut back on the amount of water
- On frigid nights protect indoor plants from
freezing; move them away from the glass or
cover glass with thick newspaper or cardboard
- Clean leaves of large and smooth- leaved
house plants like dracaena, philodendron,
ficus etc
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