Preparing your Florida Garden for Winter

Preparing your Florida Garden for Winter

Preparing your garden for winter needs a different approach if you live in Florida. That’s because we do not have snow, but mild winter temperatures. Still, some of our hardy tropical plants use to the high temperatures may suffer in the cool overnights which occur during our winter months. With possible frost warnings and cold snaps on the way, Florida lawns and gardens sometimes need a little variation in order to stay colorful and healthy.

Factors to Consider:

1. Mowing the lawn less frequently during the slow-growth season is essential for your lawn health. Mow higher, water in the morning, and spot-treat in case of infestations. To keep organic nutrients for the lawn we use a mulch kit on our mowers. You can use leaves and grass clippings to make the organic mulch at home when you mow your own lawn.

2. This is a great time of the year to maintain trees and bushes with selective pruning. You can get rid of dead branches, shape your trees, and clear pathways and beds. During the winter, your trees and plants will have reduced resources to keep the plant healthy, so trimming off any vulnerable areas will help the healthy part of the plant to thrive.

3. Adding a layer of mulch to your flower beds and around your trees helps. Mulch keeps the temperature in, also helps with moisture retention, especially important for these dry months. Additional benefits include inhibiting weed growth, reducing soil erosion, and even allowing for more nutrient rich soil.

4. If you decide to plant during winter, choose hardy plants.  Be sure to water them on a regular basis. Even if the plant above ground looks dormant or withering, the roots can remain healthy when watering regularly. The best time of the day to water is the first half of the day during winter months.

5. If the weather turns cold and frost is expected overnight, cover vulnerable plants. It’s important to extend covers all the way to the ground and preferably not with plastic. Frost blankets for plants are perfect, but you can use sheets or old quilts. We don’t recommend plastic, because it causes condensation and could cause the plant to freeze and then “burn” in the sunlight. Do not water during or hours before freezing nights.