Five Ways to Prepare a Garden for Winter

After working so hard on a garden throughout the spring and summer, you want to keep it looking as good as possible throughout the year.  

But winter can be especially hard on a garden and if you don’t take the right measures, you might find that much of your hard work was for nothing come the new year.

So, what do you need to do to prepare?

In this article, we’ll share five ways to prepare a garden for winter. 

Maintain equipment

There’s nothing more important for a garden than its tools. And winter can be hard on garden equipment, especially if they’re not cleaned and stored properly. So, properly protecting all tools and equipment should be your top priority. Power equipment and lawn mowers need servicing so they’re in perfect condition, cutting tools need sharpening, and you should wash manual tools like spades. In general, you should keep metal tools dry and oiled to prevent them from rusting over winter.

Fix up the shed

Once tools and equipment are maintained, they need to be put in a dry place to stay during the winter or else they will rust. Sheds and outbuildings are good solutions – but only if they’re in good condition. Common issues include broken roofs or cladding. Replacing these can be a relatively quick and painless process with a reliable tool like a Milwaukee nail gun. Move your tools and equipment inside the shed when it’s repaired – just make sure not to place heavy tools up high or else they might fall and get damaged

Clean paths

Winter’s wet and cold weather brings the perfect conditions for mould to grow in the garden, making pathways slippery and dangerous to tread on. It’s wise to clean them ahead of the winter to stall this process, paying special attention to any areas with stone slabs or timber decking.

Kill weeds

Many people think that weeds only develop during the summer months, but the truth is that they also grow throughout the winter. Leave them alone ahead of the cold and dark months, and you might find you’ve got a huge job on your hands come springtime. Dig them up or spray them down with weedkiller before the weather gets too wet and dreary.

Plant evergreens

Most gardens tend to look drab during the winter, but evergreens can provide colour and structure. Use them to fill the gaps in borders, providing some much-needed greenery that makes any garden look beautiful even in the depths of winter. 

Getting a garden ready for winter can be hard work. But you’ll make it significantly easier by following our expert advice above. Which of these steps will you be taking first?