Question

lawn   QUESTION: Hello, I recently moved into a house that has a front lawn
that was taken care of by professional landscapers.  I do
not have the funds to hire anyone professionally and I would
like to take care of these myself.  I remember from old
pictures of the house that some of these plants were covered
by burlap in the winter.  Is this necessary? as I do not
know enough about gardening to know how to take care of what
is planted in my front yard (or even identify them).  Can
you direct me to what is the best and easiest way to
maintain these?  Thanks you in advance.

Dave


ANSWER: You did not mention where you are writing from, Dave - rule number one: Tell me where your plants are growing.

The world is filled with tropical jungles and alaskan tundra, great plains and rocky mountains, south beach and death valley.  If you give me your zipcode (assuming you are in the U.S. since you speak English but I've gotten that wrong, you could be British), I will give you your USDA Zone.  That number is the key to EVERYTHING you grow while living in that house, from the grass you mow to the flowers that bloom in the spring.

For some reason, I am thinking you live in Canada.  I don't see any reference to Canada, so we'll proceed with the clue that there is burlap on (probably) the evergreens/foundation plants.

And for the record, Dave, this is the Annuals Department, so you really have to learn your plant jargon.  Annuals for future reference grow during the summer and die when it's over: Petunias, Impatiens, Marigolds, White Sweet Alyssum, and if you bend the definition a bit, Geraniums as well.  If the previous owners put burlap on THOSE plants, please let me know asap and we will revisit this reply.

Let's understand that probably most of the world does not know what an Annual is.  So you can stop smirking in the back row.  Dave is new, but so were we all at one time.

Burlap is SOMETIMES used to cover EVERGREENS (which are not Annuals, nor are they Perennials, they get their own category) to protect them from icy Winter winds.  Think of it as a solution to freezer burn for living plants.  Here is one of my favorite declarations ever on Burlap-wrapped shrubs, by a passionate poster named Elizabeth on the Garden Rant website:

www.gardenrant.com/my_weblog/2009/01/stop-torturing-the-evergreens.html

Fact is, shrubs provide Summer interest.  They are unmatched for foundation plantings and landscape windbreakers, privacy hedges and backdrops for deciduous members of Kingdom Plantae.

One expert concedes that "the most important thing you can do to protect your evergreens is to supply them with enough water going into Winter. However, some varieties of evergreen, Alberta Spruce for one, are more susceptible to winter injury, and you may want to provide extra protection.  Remember that you are not trying to keep your evergreens warm, but rather protect them from damaging winter sun and wind."  They also point out, "Wrapping can also protect evergreens from street salt drift."

You'll find the full report, 'Preparing Evergreens for Winter," here:

midwestgardentips.com/preparing_evergreens_for_winte.html

So depending on where you live, burlap can be an important step in the care of your evergreens.  Or not.

It is, as the writer above points out, not the only important step.  Although they are not growing in Winter, you should WATER your plants, anyway.  Reason being, wind blowing across the leaves dries them out; they have to replace that water like anybody else.  Can't do that if the ground is bone dry.  Water monthly, significantly.  Not just a few buckets.  Drench the soil for an hour.  Then stop.  This assumes you are not living in Washington State or thereabouts and it is not raining all the time.

Finally, you should be aware right off the bat that there's money to be made in them there garden supply centers off of YOU.  Yes, you!  Your pockets are an open cash register waiting to be ringed up by every powder and spray known to man.  Scare tactics abound; they'll convince you that by not spraying, blood sucking insects will be crawling everywhere, draining the life out of your plants, evergreen and otherwise.  Ignore them.

Evergreens need water and possibly burlap.  Find out what the previous owners planted, if possible, so that you can cater to the species and not the entire non-deciduous universe.

DO NOT FERTILIZE; doing so will boost growth at a time when growth is suicide, the Autumn.

Instead of fertilizer, mulch with compost or bagged manure, i.e. pour the bag out and spread it under the plant.  Earthworms will come flocking and do wonders for your Soil.  These are easy plants.  That's all you need to know.

Write with your zipcode and any followups.  Thanks for your question,

THE LONG ISLAND GARDENER

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you for your information, I am writing from Toronto,
Canada.  Similar weather to Buffalo.  I did not realize you
did not specialize in winter plants and as I know nothing
about plants I did not know who to ask.  I just wanted to
know how to protect these guys from dying.  They are not
really exposed to any street salt as it is a slow driving
street with a sidewalk and cars are always parked there.  I
do like the look of the trees and not burlap in the winter
so hopefully they will withstand the cold as I would rather
keep them uncovered.  I just thought maybe as they are
younger looking trees that they may be more susceptible to
weather.

Thanks

Dave


Answer
Toronto, eh?  My friend, you are in USDA ZONE 5.  Anything you plant, anything you grow must be "hardy to USDA Zone 5 and up":

www.usna.usda.gov/Hardzone/ushzmap.html

Cornell University Extension posts a short primer on what this number means:

www.gardening.cornell.edu/weather/zones.html

Just a wee bit chillier than Buffalo - but without the wind, which I can tell you makes all the difference in the world.  You may think it's cold in Toronto, but a single New Year's Eve in Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska or Wisconsin will make you feel like you're in Palm Beach.

Let's get back to your Burlap dilemma.  Dave, the trouble with NOT Burlap-ing could be the location of these plants.  One word:  SIDEWALK.

People down here on Long Island - less enlightened, I concede, than the progressive and highly educated Toronto population - shovels, then SALTS their sidewalks like a plate of french fries.  Next to every cash register in every supermarket and Home Depot and gas station in Nassau and Suffolk counties is a bag of rock salt, from December to April.

And salt is MURDER on plants.

So....

Maybe you don't use salt?  WONDERFUL!

Neither do I.  But it's a lot more work.  Most people don't like MORE work, especially when they see no reason NOT to like salt.  I don't know how you would manage this in Toronto in February.  But salt damage is not a pretty sight.  It gets into the soil, too.  And the Grass.  Plant tissues were not made to be sprayed with salt.

That said, I am a bit insulted - ha! - that you would NOT consider me a "specialist" in winter plants.  Dave! I specialize in gardening, all seasons of the year.  We do what we love.

But there are only 24 hours in a day, and if you go through AllExperts here you will see I have at various times delivered my 2 cents on Lawns, Roses, Bulbs, House Plants, Fertilizer, an Perennials.  I have narrowed it down to Organic Gardening and Annuals, for no particular reason.  But it lets me give well considered answers without requiring that I give up my other activities. And as far as I'm concerned, gardening is just a subset of biochemistry.  Winter plants included.

Let it snow.

L.I.G.