The new year has welcomed us with our first major storms of the
season. Take heed, though, because that doesn’t mean our outdoor
gardening tasks are finished.
The new year has welcomed us with our first major storms of the season. Take heed, though, because that doesn’t mean our outdoor gardening tasks are finished.
Everything from fertilizing to pruning and planting can still be accomplished between respites from the rain.
For instance, I always run outside to fertilize my lawn just before I know it’s going to rain. That way, I don’t have to worry about watering the fertilizer in because Mother Nature does it.
This is the perfect time to fertilize lawns with inexpensive, high-nitrogen fertilizer, such as sulphate of ammonia. At less than $5 for a 20-pound bag, sulphate of ammonia is the best and cheapest fertilizer for instantly greening up your grass. It’s fertilizer analysis is 22-0-0, meaning your lawn is getting a high dose of nitrogen, which is used to green things up.
You should only use sulphate of ammonia during cooler weather, though. If you apply it during the heat of the summer, the high-nitrogen could cause damage to your lawn. That’s another reason I use it this time of year. There’s no chance of “burning” your grass. That, plus the fact that I’m cheap. Did I tell you it’s the cheapest fertilizer around?
If you haven’t completed your pruning of roses, fruit trees and other deciduous plants, now is the time. Major pruning of roses can be done from now through the beginning of February.
Don’t be afraid to hack roses down to a few feet with only three to five major canes. The “inside” of your roses should be opened up by eliminating criss-crossing branches.
This will allow sunlight and air to circulate through your bushes come next summer.
I always get questions about citrus pruning this of year, too. Citrus are not like fruit trees. For one, citrus are not deciduous, meaning they do not lose their leaves. Most citrus do not require any pruning, but most fruit trees do.
Basically, any plant that loses its leaves this time of year can be pruned. How drastic you cut back is up to you.
Believe it or not, it’s also a good time to plant. This is bare-root planting season for things like roses, fruit and nut trees, grapes and even some shade trees. Bare-roots are specimens that are sold without soil and a container. Roots are usually wrapped in plastic. Because of this, plants are less expensive.
The only drawback to bare-roots is that you have to wait for a couple of days of dry weather to plant.
Digging in mud is no fun for anyone, and you also have to add generous amounts of planting mix or organic soil when adding new soil to the planting hole.
Do not just throw the mud back in after planting because mud will suffocate the roots.
Finally, there are also outdoor gardening tasks that should not be done during inclement weather conditions. For instance, you should not try to mow your lawn when the grass is too wet or saturated.
All you’re going to do is compact the grass further and, even worse, cause deep ruts in your lawn if the mower wheels sink in.
You should also try to avoid walking on your garden soil when things are too wet.
Besides getting your shoes all muddy, you’re also compacting the soil. The more weight on your topsoil, the more compacted it’s going to get.
