Winter Leaf Marcescence

Our gardens can be valuable habitats for birds, providing nutritious food, nesting sites, and life-saving shelter, especially during the coldest months when overwintering birds are challenged. If we are mindful of these basic needs as we design our beds and borders, we will be rewarded with a landscape rich in birds. Here are some things you can do to help our feathered friends when times are lean.

Winter season doesn’t mean you have to turn your back to your flower garden until spring comes. There is a good number of plants that bloom beautifully even in the coldest of weather. Let’s dig into their world and see which ones you will fancy.

Winter can start in December and continue through March (we even worry about snow in May up north) but do not let that put you off flowering plants.

What can gardeners do in winter? The answer lies in the soil! but to old gardeners it is still ‘Beyond our Ken’. I often spent too long polishing my good intentions this includes planning to send my mower for servicing and sharpening’ a shame I do not plan to polish up my other important gardening implements.

Eryngium giganteum better known now as ‘Miss Willmott’s ghost’ is my reminder to get ready for colder weather and Christmas. I have disconnected my hose pipes, lagged outside taps and cleaned up at least one water feature. For some reason one job I procrastinate over is protecting my pots, containers and ornaments from hard frosts. I know it is time to insulate or put them on to legs to provide some protection. At least they are already grouped together, sheltered from high wind and some of the worst weather.

Get sowing for some winter greens and veg like Beetroot, Spring Cabbages, Lettuces, Spring Onions, Chicory, Fennel and Rocket.

Leaf miners are the larvae of moths, beetles, maggots, flies or caterpillars that have hatched between the upper and lower epidermis of a leaf. They then burrow there way out eating part of the leaf and leaving a trail.

My mother very successfully grew Geraniums (pelargoniums) as indoor pot plants for many years. For the majority of gardeners the zonal geraniums are an outdoor feature of brightly coloured flowers that are often treated as annuals.

When deciding upon which trees and shrubs to plant in the landscape, I always suggest that gardeners consider plants that offer more than one season of interest. This aspect of consideration is usually not taken into account by most of the people that I speak with, but it certainly should. Especially since there are so many great trees and shrubs that help to brighten up the often-dreary winter landscape. There are several shrubs that flower in winter, some that display vibrant fruit, have interesting form or beautiful bark.

Woody ornamentals can be damaged by cold temperatures due to three main factors: lack of hardiness, early or late-season frosts or unprotected root systems. A lot of the damage that I have personally encountered has been due to low temperatures causing bark splitting. This type of damage is often difficult to diagnose because the effects are usually very delayed.

Virginia copperleaf is a tall, branched summer annual that can grow three feet tall. It takes its name from the copper colored leaves of its late summer color. This weed is a North American native that is found from Maine to Georgia and as far west as Texas and north to South Dakota. It is a member of the spurge family and is poisonous, but it does not have the milky sap that is typical of other family members. The simple leaves are oppositely arranged on the stems when the plant is a young seedling, but they change to an alternate arrangement as the weed matures.

Perennial vines in the genus Vinca have proved to be sturdy and seemingly indestructible groundcovers for the Southeastern Unites States. However, over the past few years, vinca leaf-folder caterpillars have been ravaging landscape plantings of perennial vincas (Vinca major andVinca minor). Both can be infested, but V. major seems to sustain more damage. According to Dr. Matt Bertone, Entomologist at NC State University, this pest is likely Diaphania costata.