Can we talk Gardens?

[MrsBrownie]

So my new found passion is my garden. DH and I recently started landscaping our yard and I can't seem to stop, or get it out of my system.

Luckily, with the cold weather coming there's not much more that I can do. But I did want to talk gardening.

Firstly, I need some help for getting my garden beds ready for winter, including winter pruning. I live up north, so winters here are pretty severe and we do get alot of snow.

What do I do to get ready? What do I prune and what do I leave? All the plants in my garden are perennials and should come back up next year (thank g*d for guarantees)

Here's a list of what I have:
- Three maple trees, all relatively small (about 6 feet high)
- Two Hydrangea Bushes
- Two sedum plants
- Two Barberry Bushes
- Burning Bush
- Sand Cherry Bush
- Three emerald cedars
- Six Hosta
- Two Silver Thyme Bushes
- Dwarf Japanese Juniper
- Bunch of Japanese Blood Grass
- Hybrid Hearty Hibiscus
- Tea Rose Bush

I also would like to plant some tulip bulbs and a peony bulb. Any ideas when to do that?

I know there have to be more gardeners out there thinking about getting things ready for cold weather, anyone care to help me figure it out. Maybe next year, with my green thumb, I will be able to help someone else.

TIA ~ I can use all the help I can get.

[2kCougar]

I have bulbs arriving the last week in september. So they will probably go in the first week in october. I love peonies! I just hate the ants they always seem to harbor.

From what I've been told, pruning in the fall isn't advised. It will stimulate growth--not something that you want heading into winter. Most nurseries have recommended to me that pruning should occur in late winter/early spring. Anything that flowers in the spring should be pruned after it flowers (my rhododendrons already have their spring buds).

My list:
plant our arbor day evergreens and get covers for them
add mulch to the beds
install deer fencing around all beds
another round of starter fertilizer next month and winter fertilizer in november
plant bulbs

[fuzzy]

Most pruning should be done immediately after the plant/shrub blooms (assuming it blooms). So, as 2kCougar said, fall pruning is usually not recommended.

I live in Upstate NY and we, too, have harsh winters. The best thing we do, I think, is compost and then mulch each shrub/bush. The compost will give the plants nutrients in the spring, providing plenty of good organic matter to decompose over the winter and the mulch will protect the root systems of the plants. So get lots and lots and lots of both mulch and compost (we buy our in bulk).

Rabbits are notorious (at least around here) for destroying burning bushes during the late fall/winter months. I always put wire cages around mine once the leaves start to turn.

Also, we made wind breaks and teepees for other bushes/shrubs to protect against snow damage -- particularly if the plant is near your house and may have ice falling/dripping on it or if snow will drift on it.

See: http://www.gardenguides.com/TipsandTechniques/winter.htm

[Lizard]

I pruned my boxwoods last fall, without knowing about the fall rule.... they looked fine this year but I'm going to wait 'til spring to prune them this time.

I too have a bunch of mulching/composting to do around our bushes... we put in a couple shrub roses and a burning bush about 3 weeks ago, so I will need to get those protected. I also have a small tea rose that I'm going to mulch around and try to get protected, as it's on the south side of the house and we get a lot of wind & snow in that area.

Hostas are sooo easy, don't even worry about them. They come back year after year with absolutely no effort.

I had a so-so year with my plants, I think because we had a series of late frosts that I was not prepared for (including one that came AFTER I had planted some containers for the deck, sigh). I'll be ready this spring, that's for sure. Those late frosts do way more damage than any cold winter will ever do. I really need to force myself to not do any planting until after Mother's Day, but that spring planting bug is hard to shake off. :)

[MrsBrownie]

Thanks for the advice ladies...I will definitely get the mulch and compost (we have alot of local places that we can buy in bulk.)

I understand about the pruning of trees and bushes, but what about the flowering plants, do I just leave them, leaves and all.

For example, do I just leave my rose bush as is, add the mulch and cover with burlap (I want to wrap as much as I can to guard against the wind.)

What about the Hosta, do I just leave it (leaves and all) as is until the spring. I'm so confused about what to do...hopefully I don't kill anything in my ignorance.

Thanks for the help though, much appreciated.

[fuzzy]

Let's see...

I prune my roses and sedum in the fall (sorry, I wasn't more specific). Both do not grow flowers/leaves on last year's growth. I mulch both, but don't wrap either (simply b/c there's very little to wrap).

Just leave the hostas. They take care of themselves. ;)

Lots and lots and LOTS of mulch and compost on the maple trees. But otherwise they can be left alone.

I don't do anything to my hydrangeas, expect put a wooden "teepee" over them (so it doesn't rest on the actual plant, but provides protection from the ice). I'd say the same for the hibicus (we don't have one, just as a disclaimer!).

If the cedars are small enough, wrap them with burlap. We didn't do that our first year and they suffer much from winter kill.

I've never done anything to my juniper, except compost and mulch where we can. It seems to fair just fine.

I'm not sure about the Thyme, Sand Cherries, or blood grass.