The Whistling Gardener

by Steve Smith

Steve Smith is owner of Sunnyside Nursery in Marysville, located at 3915 Sunnyside Blvd., and a respected local expert on all things horticultural. You can reach Steve at 425-334-2002 or by e-mail at info@sunnysidenursery.net.

I know it is hard to think about working in the garden in the month of December, but really truly, there are things to do and plants to enjoy. It's a peaceful time to be in the yard provided it isn't raining sideways or blowing like crazy, both of which are happening as I write this! Oh well, when the next "nice day" rolls around, here are some chores to consider.

LAWNS: I am going to give you free pass on lawn care. Remove leaves, stay off the lawn if it is frozen and don't even think about it until next March. How do you like that?

FRUIT AND FLOWERING TREES: Clean up all leaves and dispose of properly. I believe in keeping gardening simple, so to that end, I recommend one or two applications of Bonide Orchard spray on one of those "nice days" this winter to help control insects and diseases. It is all natural and very safe to use. Don't do any pruning until February.

VEGETABLES: At this point if you haven't planted a fall crop of veggies, then spread compost over the area. This will keep the weeds down over the winter and by spring you can rototill it into the soil and you will have the best garden in the neighborhood.

BULBS: Believe it or not, you can still plant bulbs in December. So, if you still have bags of bulbs sitting in the garage or can find them at the garden center, get them planted. I like to cram a bunch of them into containers too.

FLOWERS/CONTAINERS: There is no need to look at empty beds or containers all winter long. You can plant pansies and violas and lots of evergreen perennials and small shrubs that can add foliar color and texture all through the winter.

BERRIES: Here's another free pass. Other than spreading some mulch on the ground, just ignore your berries until February.

GRAPES AND KIWIS: Again, leave them alone until February for pruning, but hit them with some of that Bonide Orchard Spray for disease control this winter.

ROSES: Remember "Hip high in the fall, knee high in the spring." This is how you should be pruning most of your roses. Climbing roses need to be secured to their trellis and the long canes shortened up just a little bit. After pruning and thoroughly cleaning around the base of the rose, apply some lime and then pile up some mulch about 10-12 inches high to protect the graft union from a really ugly winter. Chances are that if you didn't do this last winter then you lost your roses.

PERENNIALS: When I think of perennials I tend to put them into two camps--sticks and mushers. The mushers are the ones like hostas that mush to the ground at the first frost. These are easy to clean up at that point. Sticks are the ones like asters that turn brown but remain woody. Cut them half way back to the ground and in spring, as the new growth emerges from the base, remove the rest of the old growth. I suppose there is a third camp which would be the evergreen ones like Bergenia and Heuchera which just need some grooming to keep them looking good all winter.

ORNAMENTAL GRASSES: There are two camps here as well. Evergreen grasses like the sedges, fescues, blue oat grass and pampas grass should be left alone until late February and then cut close to the ground. Deciduous grasses like all the maiden grasses and Japanese forest grass can be cut down to the ground anytime after they turn brown from a hard freeze. Pretty simple, don't you think?

FINALLY, remember that there is something of interest every day of the year here in the northwest. There is not a day that goes by that I can't go out into the nursery and find some plant that is either in bloom or is sporting berries or interesting bark or an unusual branching pattern or wonderful fall color. There is no reason to go through our gray winters looking at a bare and boring garden. Check out my monthly Boring Yard Buster series on our website for suggestions on what to plant each month of the year to keep our gardens looking interesting 12 months a year.



Happy Gardening

Steve "The Whistling Gardener" Smith