Courtesy of Midwestgardentips.com
“Don’t stop gardening just because it’s winter,” says Cindy Baker, Manager of Grounds at the Chicago Botanic Garden. Most plants, at least those hardy to your climate, can handle 90% of winters, but why not hedge your bets a little so that come spring, you have no sad discoveries (whether due to animals, frost, or dehydration)?
Once the ground freezes completely, there’s not much to be done for annuals, but you can extend the season a little longer until then. When you are aware that there will be an early cold snap or hard frost, lay down a bed sheet on the protected plants. “The sheet holds in enough heat to get them through the night,” says Cindy. Lift it off in the morning once the sun hits. You can also get creative and try protecting individual plants with items like dog food bags or milk jugs. Just don’t use plastic sheets—they don’t allow for enough air exchange. Glass or clay cloches make for perhaps the prettiest option, but also the priciest.
