Frost-burn requires patience
For the first time in months my shrubs and grass are beginning to emerge from the winter snow. Because of changing temperatures it has really been a mixture of condensed snow and ice that has covered our yard, and it has taken its toll. Some of my boxwood have frost burns (I didn’t cover them because I have never had this problem before), and the grass in our paddocks looks weary. To get my garden started this spring I plan to:
For frost damaged boxwoods:
-Wait until a few inches of new, healthy growth, emerges before enriching their beds with compost because stimulating growth stresses the plant-this requires patience!
-Don’t prune-plants can take up to a year to recover from frost damage. Pruning adds stress.
-Keep injured plants watered in the spring and summer until they regain their strength.
For the lawn:
-Aerate our lawn (even though some years we only do this in the fall).
This allows oxygen to reach the roots and beneficial soil bacteria. The frost has to be melted and the yard firm, not muddy, so we can’t do this yet.
-look for bare spots and seed them before weeds get a chance to catch hold.
-Sharpen our mower blades after the first mow of the season. Despite our best efforts there are always some branches or stones on that first run.
-Overseed our lawn with a small amount of grass seed to outcompete weeds. Usually we do this in the fall, but we may do that this spring, too.
-Plant sunflowers, echinacea and other plants that will attract birds. Birds eat pests that might prey on stressed plants.
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