Gardening offers its owners and caretakers multiple benefits, from giving people much-needed respite following a tough working day. And a chance to connect with nature, away from the usual devices and screens that often absorb our attention. So, for your sake, it’s essential to keep your plot maintained, protected to ensure it exhibits beauty all year round.
It’s a common misconception that following summer, there’s nothing left to do to the garden. On the contrary, now is the time to ensure your outdoor space and everything in it can withstand the severe winter that’s coming. But if you’re unsure of how to do that, take a look through the tips and advice below.
Wipe and Sweep
Winter weather can often make going into the garden to maintain anything impossible. So now is an excellent time to start preparing for what the colder months may bring.
This means disposing of unused toys and cleaning and sharpening garden tools ready for storage.
Plus, to brush off the old cobwebs and leaves from the fences, outdoor furnishings and sweep it all together, ready to put in the trash.
By sorting out what you do and don’t need in the garden, you can begin making room outdoors for the items you’d like to keep and protect.
Utilize Storage Space
It’s essential to prevent winter weather from tarnishing your outdoor items.
So, once you’ve wiped down each piece, you’ll want to store them properly to preserve them throughout the winter.
As an option, you can purchase furniture covers designed for outdoor use. However, these can only protect your garden belongings so much. And can’t, for example, prevent the wind from sweeping furniture up and over, which could lead to broken chairs or tables.
As such, if you don’t have an outbuilding or garage, think about installing storage space that’s ample and sturdy enough to house your things. In turn, you can prevent damp, mold, and rust from destroying garden tools, furniture, and so on.
If you have a chicken coop or an area for livestock in your garden, you should also invest in the right supplies. Remember that wintertime can be dangerous for chickens because they may freeze to death if they don’t have the right shelter with proper insulation. The same could be said for livestock such as pigs and cows. They must be kept in a barn with insulated walls to keep out the cold.
Aside from investing in a quality chicken coop, you should also make sure that you have the right containers for their eggs. Eggs are usually plentiful and fragile. By investing in the best egg-handling equipment available, you can safely transport and store your chickens’ eggs no matter the season.
Continue Maintaining the Garden
The grass and plants’ growth rate will slow down in the run-up to winter. But that doesn’t mean you should stop doing general maintenance tasks. You should, however, make a few alterations to your usual gardening regime.
For instance, when mowing the lawn, avoid using the lowest setting. A high setting will ensure the grass has enough length and strength to sustain the winter weather.
Furthermore, while leaves scattered across the lawn may appear like an eyesore, they can do wonders for the composition of the soil and act as a mulch to protect the base of your plants and shrubs. So once you’ve raked and gathered them together, divide them amongst your greenery.
Suppose gardening is one of your favorite activities because there’s plenty you can do to look after your backyard in preparation for the winter months. Garden maintenance needn’t end just yet.
Plus, you could even research and start planning what bulbs and seeds to plant in the upcoming months. To ensure your garden is filled with an array of beauty throughout the future seasons.