What To Do In The Mediterranean Winter Garden

What To Do In The Mediterranean Winter Garden
By Jonathan Ya'akobi

The late autumn and early winter is a time of year when the gardener may be inclined to rest somewhat, believing that the garden tasks have largely been completed and that there is not too much to do until preparations for spring commence. This may be true to some extent in cold winter climates, but in Mediterranean regions, typified by mild winters, there is no shortage of necessary garden jobs to carry out. Furthermore, there is still time to complete some tasks which perhaps should have been performed in the autumn.

Feeding: Ideally, feeding should have been done at the beginning of the autumn, in order to take advantage of the brief resurgence of plant growth in the fall. If you neglected to do so, I recommend at this time, using organic compost without adding chemical fertilizer. As opposed to harsh winter regions, many plants do in fact grow considerably during the mild winter, even if this is not always apparent visually. The low nutriment concentrations released to the soil by compost should be entirely adequate to supply the requirements of the ornamental plans, while the adding of organic matter to the soil, is in any case a necessary, indeed vitally important thing in itself.

Lawn Care: If you failed to fertilize your lawn at the end of the summer, then it would be advisable to apply now a potassium rich fertilizer. High potassium levels through the winter, improve the lawn's hardiness to cold, and seem to allow for a better start when the grass renews its growth in the spring. Applying high doses of nitrogen is at best superfluous at this time of year. My preference is for slow or controlled release fertilizer, as opposed to readily dissolvable fertilizer like potassium chloride. All this is relevant of course to those who grow the perennial grass lawns common to hot summer/mild winter areas, such as Bermuda, Zoysia, Kikuya or St. Augustine grass. Mowing should be performed taking particular care not to scalp the lawn.

Dividing Perennials: This is probably the best season for lifting up, dividing and transplanting herbaceous perennials like Agapanthus, Achillea, or Coreopsis. In hot weather, the plants are liable to wither and die, because as root systems are inevitably damaged during transplanting, a time gap is created between replanting and the capacity of the uprooted plants to take up moisture from the soil. Plants should be pruned back before being up lifted, in order to reduce water loss, and kept in the shade until being replanted. This must be carried out as rapidly as possible, and then the plants should be hand watered immediately. The top soil must not be permitted to dry out until the plants have established themselves. Contrary to popular opinion, the winter is a perfectly appropriate season for planting, very tender species excepted, even where temperatures sink below 0c now and again.

Pruning is not generally recommended now. Cold sensitive plants should not be touched until all possibility of frost has passed, and those cold hardy plants which are normally pruned during their dormant season, should also not be pruned until the latter half of the winter. Nonetheless, ornamental grasses that look poor during the winter can be cut to the ground, on condition that they are not cold sensitive species. If in doubt, wait till the spring. The whole question of pruning in the winter will be dealt with in a future article. You can also click on the link below, and by clicking on the articles page of my site, find recent, related articles such as:

* Pruning In The Autumn - What You Should And Should Not Do

* Irrigation - How To Look After The Watering Needs Of Your Plants In The Winter

* What to do for your Lawn in the Spring/Autumn

About the author - Jonathan Ya'akobi. I've been gardening in a professional capacity since 1984. I am the former head gardener of the Jerusalem Botanical Garden, but now concentrate on building gardens for private home owners. I also teach horticulture to students on training courses. I'd love to share my knowledge and experience with you. So you're welcome to visit me on http://www.dryclimategardening.com

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