Winter care of trees and shrubs : Prevent cold weather damage

If you live in a cold-weather zone, you know thatlayer, not a single layer. To avoid having to cover
winter can be hard on garden plants. Here are tipsyour evergreens, don't plant them near a road
for protecting your valuable woody plants.that gets salted, or plant salt-tolerant species such
Watering: Good winter care starts with thoroughas junipers.
watering in the fall.- Protect broadleaf evergreens such as
When the garden season draws to a close, it isrhododendron, pieris and laurel from the drying
tempting to just forget about your plants.effects of winter sun and wind with an
However you should continue to water all woodyanti-desiccant spray such as Wilt-Pruf, which coats
plants - especially newly planted trees and shrubsfoliage with a protective waxy film. You can also
and all evergreens in the fall.wrap with burlap, if you must.
Evergreens and broadleaf evergreens don't lose- Protect young trees by putting plastic tree
their leaves, so they need a good store ofguards around the bottom of their trunks to
moisture going into winter because they continueprevent damage from gnawers such as rabbits
to transpire (give off water vapor) through theand mice. Make sure the tree guards go high
cold months.enough - over the snow line. Always remove
Most winter damage to evergreens doesn'tthem in the spring because it looks better and
actually come from cold, but from the dryingyou don't have the problem of the guards
effects of late winter sun and wind. With the soiltrapping moisture against the bark in the summer
frozen hard, plant roots can't take up water toand attracting insects.
make up for moisture losses from transpiration- If rabbits are a big problem in your area, winter
and, as a result, dehydration can cause browningcare of trees and shrubs should include putting
or burning of foliage.chicken wire cages around the plants they find
- If your plants get salt spray from the road,most tasty.
burlap may help, but wrap them with a double