LOCK HAVEN – A Penn State horticulturist has some winter gardening tips to help make sure your plants are ready for spring. Thomas Butzler, Horticulture Educator at Penn State Extension in Clinton County, tells WKOK Sunrise that now is a good time to do some work in the garden.
He says you can do some mulching….making sure in particular that new plants or bulbs are well covered by 2-3 inches of organic material. Additionally, he says pruning can be beneficial. He says during the winter time there are no leaves so you can better see the plant’s structure.
He said, “It’s really good time to get a good overview of the architecture of that tree or that shrub. Then once you see that you can go in and do some pruning if you want to modify the structure of that plant, if you want to increase airflow.” He noted that be sure you aren’t pruning a spring flowering plant, as you could cut off this spring’s flowers.
On another topic, Butzler said discarded Christmas trees can be used to help prevent weeds in the spring, or it can be used as a shelter for birds and other small animals. He says if you have an old Christmas tree, here’s a tip for recycling it.
“Maybe take out your Christmas tree and tie it up loosely to a fence post or to another existing large tree. Now if you don’t want to tie it up you can just throw it out there and let it lay on the ground. We do have some of those critters out there that are looking for shelter.”
For help identifying plants to prune–or not prune–contact your local master gardener in your county or visit https://extension.psu.edu/tom-butzler.
