Re: Winterizing Z5 (IL) perennial beds?




From: Valerie Lowery@ZEON on 11/08/99 08:27 AM

Barb,

I wouldn't put leaves on your beds.  I live in zone 6a and what I've found
for our wet winters is that the leaves compact and hold water, thus rotting
some of your perennials that can't take all of that moisture.  I use a wood
mulch (big chunks -- not that shredded kind) that I apply only after the
ground has frozen.  All you're trying to do is prevent the freeze-thaw
cycle that will uproot your plants and kill them.  I've heard of people
using pine boughs, too.  Since I don't have any, the mulch is fine.
Compost your leaves and use them in the spring.

Now last winter our ground never froze.  I had tender perennials come back
(like the cannas and dahlias that I missed digging up) and that was a sure
sign.  Therefore, I never mulched.  Spring was glorious.

One other thing to remember is what plants you can cut back in the fall and
which ones prefer a trimming in the spring.  Some have hollow stems and
water from the winter will collect, freeze, and destroy the plant.  Some,
like my red hot pokers, prefer their leaves tied around their crown to
protect it from freezing.  I don't cut it back until spring.  My grasses
wait until spring as well as my butterfly bushes.  That old foliage can
help keep the plant happy, but know that sometimes pests can overwinter on
it, so you'll need to cut it off and destroy it before your plants start
actively growing.  If you can recognize it, leave any praying mantis egg
cases alone.  Before I could recognize what they looked like, I had removed
them thinking that they were pests.  Now, I look forward to the rascals
every year.  They're everywhere and are so cool to look at.


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