RE: Mulching


> Valerie Lowery@ZEON
> 08/20/98 03:50 PM
>
> Now that school has started here in Kentucky, the gardening
> chores for fall
> are close behind.  A simple question:  for overwintering perennials, which
> is the best way to mulch -- around the plant but not touching the plant or
> directly covering the plant, base and all?
>
> I want to think that covering the plant would be best, but I wouldn't want
> the crown to rot.  Yet if I don't cover, will the crown rot anyway due to
> the exposure to the freeze-thaw cycle?  Most of my books just say "mulch
> your plants", but they don't go into much other detail.
>
> I've been gardening for some time now and I've always wondered if
> I mulched
> correctly.  I never have 100% of my plants to survive a winter for one
> reason or another (I usually suffer one or two casualties or major
> setbacks) and I wonder if this could be a contributing factor.
>
> Plus, I'm about to buy some plants that are a little more pricey than I
> would normally pay and I want to protect my investment.
>
> Val in KY

I usually apply winter mulch in December or January, after the ground has
frozen.  January is great, because people are more than willing to donate
those free mulch sources - Christmas trees.

Christmas trees are an excellent light mulch in that you just saw off the
branches and lay them across the crowns.  Too, when you do fall cleanup and
prune away the excess plant material, you might like to keep  about 6" to 8"
of the plant stems.  Those stems will even help anchor the tree branches on
the plant's crown, keeping the shade going even during windy Spring weather.

Another alternative if you are worried about crown rot is to cover the
crowns with a plastic pot and mulch over the upturned pot.  You'll get the
protective properties of the mulch and the pot will help keep the crowns
dry.  Again, do this after the ground has frozen.

Barb in Southern Indiana    Zone 5/6     <dorsett@blueriver.net>
   Midwest Gardener    http://www.suite101.com/topics/page.cfm/430
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