How to Prepare Your Garden for Winter
You’ve spent the last few months planting, pruning and looking after your lawn – but now that temperatures have suddenly dropped, it may seem like there’s not much to do with your lawns or gardens in winter. Although your grass and plants have stopped growing, this is the perfect time to plan out some seasonal garden care with the winter ahead. Follow our tips on lawn preparation for winter so you can keep your beautiful greenery in pristine condition.
You’ve spent the last few months planting, pruning and looking after your lawn – but now that temperatures have suddenly dropped, it may seem like there’s not much to do with your lawns or gardens in winter. Although your grass and plants have stopped growing, this is the perfect time to plan out some seasonal garden care with the winter ahead. Follow our tips on lawn preparation for winter so you can keep your beautiful greenery in pristine condition.
Clear the Leaves
You’ve cleaned them up...and now they’re back! Staying on top of the leaves falling onto your paths in autumn and early winter can seem like a lot of work, but leaves are not the enemy!
If you’re wondering about how to improve garden soil over the winter, wasteful leaves are a hidden gift as a great natural fertiliser and source of nutrients for your garden. A few hidden piles of leaves can also provide shelter for hibernating wildlife, such as your friendly neighbourhood hedgehog.
To put them to good use, grab a rake, brush, or your leaf blower (for bigger spaces), and stack them up. Then, simply leave them in stockpiles out back and use them as organic mulch for winter, or take them away for composting.
The Honda cordless leaf blower boasts a variety of benefits such as environmentally friendly and accessible movement, super quiet operation and makes winter gardening jobs like these a breeze.
Discover the power of cordless leafblowers
Clean the Gutters
Dead leaves, weeds and dirt team up with rain to easily block your gutters during autumn. With the added strain of winter ice and frost, clearing and checking our gutters is an important task in this process. It’s always worth it to add regular gutter maintenance checks to your winter garden preparation checklist.
Some things to tick off here would be looking out for blockages as well as checking the structural integrity of your gutters, and spotting rust and corrosion so you can take steps to ensure garden and plant protection in winter.
If you’re not comfortable or experienced with getting up on your roof to take a peek, be sure to book an expert for this step.
Cut the Grass
A great lawn makes your garden look brighter and more beautiful, but winter garden preparation for frost and other hazards can be just as important as summertime care. Scarification is a process that removes excessive thatch from your lawn.
The thatch prevents water and oxygen from reaching grass roots and, when left alone, this build-up can become a big problem. Luckily, it’s an easy one to solve using the right tools.
For smaller gardens in winter, a scarifying rake can take care do the trick, but for bigger spaces, you may need the help of your trusty tiller. We recommend Honda’s compact tiller – this versatile machine will not only take care of the thatch, it will lift and loosen any moss, allowing air to get into the roots without damaging them.
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Remove Weeds and Tidy Borders
Protect plants from winter by removing dead weeds and other vegetation will save your garden a lot of trouble from pesky slugs and snails. These garden creatures can feast on decaying vegetation, putting them in a good place to take over your plants. If you’re thinking about composting when you’re gardening in winter – be careful with your selection! Anything diseased can end up damaging your garden, so it’s best to throw them out.
Now let’s get to work on your borders. Most winter plant care guides will tell you that Herbaceous perennials will need their dead leaves or collapsed stems removed, and may even need to be moved inside to protect them from frost.
The best way to protect your borders is by mulching them. This means spreading a layer of organic matter over the soil to suppress the weeds, add nutrients and keep away pests. Spread around three inches of compost or bark chippings over the weeded soil. Be sure that the ‘mulch’ doesn’t come into contact with the stems of your shrubs and trees, as this can cause rotting.
Protect Against Frost and Snow
To keep your beautiful plants from damage, you need to prepare for winter frost and snow. A light dusting may not do too much damage, but it’s still a good idea to cover them with hessian or a gardening fleece to keep them safe.
For heavy snow, the innovative Honda Snowthrower is your best friend.
No more shovelling snow – you can now clear large areas. For family gardens, the Single-Stage Snowthrower can clear paths five to six times quicker than doing it by hand, saving you time on those chilly winter gardening sessions.
Discover Honda's Snowthrower