Last year's variable winter wreaked havoc on gardens across the Midwest and effected the survival of many plants that we look forward to seeing every warm season. Luckily, there are ways to plan for freeze-thaw environments and to protect your garden.
Plants like strawberries and tulips are especially susceptible to weather fluctuations, so laying down a good bed of straw around these plants works as an insulator to make sure they don't experience the effects of drastic rising and falling temperatures.
Saplings and bushes also need protection from critters under the snowline, and hardware cloth can do the trick. Make sure to wrap around the base and up to the first branch. Larger trees, especially cedars, are always on the winter menu for deer. Tom Kasper recommends wrapping them with burlap or deer netting.
The best time to set up these defense mechanisms is in the next couple weeks before the busy holiday season.
You can hear Tips for Hardy Gardeners every other Tuesday at 8:20am on Northland Morning.
