Winter Season Care of Plants
by Suzanne Van Sciver, Quinton Nursery

This article will focus on winter season care of plants. It is always advisable to consult with professionals if you have specific questions.

A question I am often asked by gardeners and landscapers is “When should I cut back my plants?” Liriopes and grasses are best cut back in the early spring, before new growth emerges. This can be from mid to late February. Liriopes should be left with 3-4” of growth. Ornamental grasses are best cut back to 8-12”. 

Methods for cutting back are weed wackers, hedge shears, or extremely sharp scissors. I prefer to use hand shears, or hedge shears. Each of these results in a clean cut. Weed wackers are less labor intensive, but will leave a ragged appearance. 

Other fall garden maintenance include cleaning flower beds, old growth, and trimming shrubs. If you want spring flowers, bulbs should have been planted by now. (These are a great showy way to get early color in your flower beds.)  It’s important to clean your garden beds to discourage rodents, as well as encourage air flow so rot doesn’t occur.

A fun thing to do in the cold months is to plan for the new season. Choose plants to fill in your gardens by looking thru magazines and gardening specialty books. Ask your local garden center to special order unusual plants. (Just don’t forget to pick them up!) They will be happy to fill any special requests. 

Enjoy!

About Quinton Nursery
Quinton Nursery is a grower of perennials, ornamental grasses, shrubs, and liriopes. Liriopes comprise the largest portion of thier sales, with grasses pulling up a close second. Quinton Nursery has been in business for 10 years, selling primarily wholesale. For more information, please visit www.QuintonNursery.com.