Hosta Garden - Winter Tips

The autumn season has been mild in comparison to last year.  Today the temperature was 63' and I took advantage of the mild weather and prepared my Hosta gardens for winter.  I started my day by hand removing all of the reaming leaf matter. 

When I finished my task of removing all of the leaves and sticks I started hand-pulling all of the weeds.  For stubbornly rooted weeds, I used my hand tools to dig them out.  I prefer to weed my gardens in the fall rather than spring. 

Note:  I do not add weeds to my compost instead I place them in trash bags and put them by the curb for trash removal.  

When the hand pull of the weeds was completed I applied one inch of compost by spreading it on top of the entire garden.  The compost is an excellent fertilizer for the crocus and daffodils that are planted in this three-season garden.  

Next, I applied three inches of Scott’s natural scapes advanced color-enhanced classic black mulch.  Normally I prefer to use natural cypress mulch but this year I opted for Scotts mulch.  The black organic mulch is a nice contrast to the flagstone and it also prevents weeds naturally as well it retains moisture with a guarantee that I will use 30% less water.  

Water conservation is important to me so I decided to try the color-enhanced mulch. 

Scotts  Mulch and Liriope by Susan Golis

I prefer to apply the mulch by hand around the plants. Many people will open the bag of mulch and dump the contents on the garden and then rake it in place.  This is an easy and quick way to mulch a garden bed, however when you do that you will damage any plant life.  Yes, it will grow back; you will have to cut off the damaged leaves and stems and the plant will suffer.

I prefer to take my time and apply the mulch by hand, gently setting the mulch around the plants so that there is no breakage.  In fact, hand pulling of weeds and hand application of mulch is my specialty and I have obtained many garden contracts due to this skill. 

Every gardener excels in a specific area and mine is attention to detail.  I enjoyed my time in the garden today and I am satisfied with my feature garden.