Master Gardeners Help You Prepare for Winter

There is a lot to do to prepare your plants, flower and vegetable beds, and lawn for winter. First don’t forget to take your houseplants inside to protect them from the cold. Then think about your shrubs, native plants and sowing seeds for spring. 

Acclimating Houseplants Back Inside

Most houseplants are from the tropical parts of the world, so temperatures at or below 45-50 degrees can have an impact on their ability to sustain themselves. Light levels and temperatures are very different depending on the side of the front door the plant is on. By acclimating the plants over a couple of weeks to the interior environment, the plant will be more successful inside through the cold months. Start by bringing in your plants for a couple of hours in the morning, then slowly extend that time spent inside over a couple of weeks until they are living inside all day long.

Taking Care of Shrubs

Shrubs fill a great ecological and visual niche in your home landscape. Most shrubs are larger than herbaceous perennials but smaller than trees. However, taking care of them can fall somewhere in the middle of these two types of plants, so selecting species that don’t require much work and are well adapted to the northeast Kansas climate is key! To read more on this topic check out Shrubs by Andrew McIndoe, Trees, Shrubs and Roses for Midwest Gardens by Ezra Haggard, and Shrubs & Hedges by Eva Monheim are some good starting points.

Native Plants Help Nature

With our climate and weather patterns getting more erratic year after year and an increased focus on supporting pollinators and wildlife, what plants can help solve both of these issues? Native plants! Native plants have adapted to the climate of northeast Kansas over hundreds and thousands of years and grew alongside the wildlife that call this part of the world home. However, not all plants need to be native in the landscape.

Join Master Gardener Caroline Seals Oct 8 at 7pm to learn about incorporating native plants in your landscape. Native Plants of the Midwest and The Midwest Native Plant Primer by Alan Branhagen are great resources as you start your native plant journey.

Native plants can also help you create a backyard that birds will call home in every season. At the library Oct 14, 6:30-7:30pm I will teach you how native plants, water features, shelter and sustainable landscaping practices work together to attract and support birds year-round.

Winter Seed Sowing

Starting your own plants is a great way to spend time through the cold periods of the year. You can grow exactly the plants and varieties you want. This can be intimidating, but by keeping a few factors in mind this is a hobby well worth your time. Join Master Gardeners Lynn Weaver and Kevin Siek at the library Nov 12 for Winter Seed Sowing Inside and Out at 7pm to learn what supplies you need and a tips to get you growing! For more information on this topic read Starting & Saving Seeds by Julie Thompson-Adolf or Starting Seeds by Barbara W. Ellis.

Solutions to Gardening Problems

Please call the Extension Office with any gardening questions. Through the end of September, the Master Gardeners are staffing the Response Line, a free service that can diagnose your issues and provide you with research-based information to solve your gardening problems. Call 785-232-0062, come into the office (1740 SW Western Ave), or use our new online question submission form.