{"id":9824,"date":"2020-01-14T17:47:00","date_gmt":"2020-01-14T07:47:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gardens.theownerbuildernetwork.co\/?p=9824"},"modified":"2025-10-30T21:18:29","modified_gmt":"2025-10-30T11:18:29","slug":"8-winter-tasks-to-prepare-your-garden-for-spring","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theownerbuildernetwork.co\/gardens\/2020\/01\/14\/8-winter-tasks-to-prepare-your-garden-for-spring\/","title":{"rendered":"8 Winter Tasks to Prepare Your Garden for Spring"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"In
In a few months, you\u2019ll be caught up in a whirlwind of seed sowing and growing as you nurture your garden back to life. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It may not feel like it yet, but spring is on its way. This early, gardeners are already starting to break out their tools, tend to their soil, and grow seedlings indoors to prepare for spring. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s a lot to do. In a few months, you\u2019ll be caught up in a whirlwind of seed sowing, planting, and growing as you nurture your garden back to life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prepping Your Garden for Spring<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You should make use of the quieter winter months to organize your thoughts and get a head start on the new gardening year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are a few tips and pointers on how to prepare your\ngarden for spring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Order Seeds Now<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Order summer-flowering bulbs and seeds<\/a> now. This is a perfect gardening task for a wet and windy winter\u2019s day. Flowers like lilies, gladioli, and ranunculi can all be ordered in the winter for early-spring planting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Order
Order summer-flowering bulbs and seeds now. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

2. Start Seeds Indoors <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Many plants won\u2019t grow well if you simply put seeds directly\ninto your garden\u2019s soil. Start growing from seed indoors in the weeks leading\nup to spring. You can transplant the small plants into the garden when they\u2019re\nready to thrive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Start
Start growing from seed indoors in the weeks leading up to spring.
(Photo: marajanecreations.com\/Flickr) <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

3. Tidy Up<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Start tidying up. Remove those leaves and other debris from flower beds and borders. You can cut back the dead growth of deciduous grasses and herbaceous perennials now. But if you’d like to be wildlife-friendly, it\u2019s best to leave these until early spring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In an article for Thompson & Morgan, Sue Andersen says you should clear borders and beds back to bare soil. Put the dead organic matter you\u2019ve cleared away into your compost pile or bin. The compost will be useful once the planting season starts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Start
Start tidying up. Remove those leaves and other debris from flower beds and borders. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

4. Start Collecting Rainwater<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Most of the year\u2019s rain falls in winter. Now is the time to start collecting it. Harvesting rainwater is essential for environment-friendly gardening. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peak demand for water in the hotter months often forces\nwater companies to resort to groundwater reserves and streams. This is both harmful\nto the environment and costly for consumers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Harvesting
Harvesting rainwater is essential for environment-friendly gardening. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

5. Maintain Fences, Gates, and Trellises <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Winter is the best time to get those nagging little\nmaintenance jobs out of the way. Check your fence panels, gates, and trellis\nfor any sign of weather damage or decay. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fixing any broken structures now will give you more time to\nspend in the garden during the spring and summer. Replace any broken segments\nor structures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Check
Check your fence panels, gates, and trellis for any sign of weather damage or decay. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

6. Start Removing Garden Pests<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Hunt down and remove hibernating pests now. The effort will save you a lot of trouble come spring and summer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Take a closer look at the crowns of your perennial plants. Check for slugs, snails, and aphid colonies sheltering for the winter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Hunt
Hunt down and remove hibernating pests now. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

7. Maintain Your Gardening Tools<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Maintaining your garden tools will help preserve them. This\nwill save you money in the long run and help prevent the spread of disease.\nDirty secateurs are notorious for introducing bacteria and fungi to fresh\npruning wounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Use a strong detergent, hot water, and a scourer to give bladed tools a thorough once over. Sharpening your tools will improve their performance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once sharpened, apply some WD40 to the blades and hinges, let it clean and then drip from your tools for about an hour, then apply oil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Maintaining
Maintaining your garden tools will help preserve them. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

8. Start a Compost Area<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

If you haven’t done so already, now is the time to set up a compost area in your garden. This could be as simple as buying a ready-made compost bin or you could build your own. <\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your garden\u2019s compost area provides somewhere to put all\nyour organic waste. Once it has broken down, you’ll get a lovely, rich compost\nyour plants will thrive on. Make sure you have a good mixture of grass\nclippings, vegetable peelings, paper, and woody pruning. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You’ll need to turn your compost with a garden fork each\nmonth to keep it aerated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"If
If you haven’t done so already, now is the time to set up a compost area in your garden. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Invest a Little Time in Your Garden this Winter<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

As you can see, there is much to be done in winter for your\ngarden. Investing a little time for winter garden preparation helps ensure your\ngarden can provide a healthy home for your crops come spring. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The payoff is worth it. Both your wallet and your health\nwill benefit from growing produce at home. Work your way through the list and your\ngarden will be in fine form when spring finally arrives!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Investing a little time in winter garden preparations helps ensure your garden can provide a healthy home for your crops come spring. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13557,"featured_media":9826,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"Get your garden spring-ready with 8 essential winter tasks. Prep now for healthier crops and a thriving garden when warm weather arrives.","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_robots_follow":"","_seopress_robots_imageindex":"","_seopress_robots_snippet":"","_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_robots_breadcrumbs":"","_seopress_robots_freeze_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_custom_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_canonical":"","_seopress_social_fb_title":"","_seopress_social_fb_desc":"","_seopress_social_fb_img":"","_seopress_social_fb_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_height":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_title":"","_seopress_social_twitter_desc":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_height":0,"_seopress_redirections_value":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled_regex":"","_seopress_redirections_logged_status":"both","_seopress_redirections_param":"","_seopress_redirections_type":301,"_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","_seopress_news_disabled":"","_seopress_video_disabled":"","_seopress_video":[{"url":"","title":"","desc":"","thumbnail":"","duration":"","rating":"","view_count":"","tag":""}],"_seopress_pro_schemas_manual":[],"_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable_all":"","_seopress_pro_rich_snippets_disable":[],"_seopress_pro_schemas":[],"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sma_last_campaign_date":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[99,182],"tags":[241,243],"class_list":["post-9824","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lawn-care","category-tips-and-tricks","tag-gardening-in-winter","tag-preparing-your-garden-for-spring"],"modified_by":"julian","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theownerbuildernetwork.co\/gardens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9824","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theownerbuildernetwork.co\/gardens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theownerbuildernetwork.co\/gardens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theownerbuildernetwork.co\/gardens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13557"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theownerbuildernetwork.co\/gardens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9824"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/theownerbuildernetwork.co\/gardens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9824\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theownerbuildernetwork.co\/gardens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9826"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theownerbuildernetwork.co\/gardens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9824"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theownerbuildernetwork.co\/gardens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9824"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theownerbuildernetwork.co\/gardens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9824"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}