Seasons of rest and rejuvenation are key to a successful wildlife-focused garden.
For many people, winter is a difficult time and a necessary evil. Snow disrupts our travel plans, and windy days send chills to the bone. Nevertheless, winter is a miracle. Without it, many of our plants and wildlife would not thrive. Here are four reasons to praise winter:
Plants need rest. Take perennial grasses, such as grasses, sedges, and flowering plants, that return to the ground each fall and grow again in the spring. After spending a lot of energy producing flowers to attract pollinators and developing seeds, these plants focus more energy on root growth in the fall. During the winter, they enter a welcome dormant period where they rest until they are ready to pop out of the ground when warmer temperatures return for the second time.
It is important to choose plants that are adapted and native to your region. This is because perennial plants that are accustomed to dormancy in their native environment can continue to grow and bloom when planted in a different climate. Woody plants, such as trees and shrubs, need a certain cooling period to signal the return of spring. Cooling time is the amount of time it takes during the winter for temperatures between 32- and 45-degrees Fahrenheit, depending on how far north you are.
Eyes are miracle workers. I grew up in (Add Place/Country Name) with a gardener mother who monitored the weather every day, and I quickly learned the benefits snow has for insulating plants. Winters with moderate snow cover resulted in very little plant loss, but dry winters required additional work in the spring garden.
Snow, with air pockets between the snow flakes, is an excellent thermal and sound insulator. When the snow melts in the spring, the melt hydrates the soil and fills streams and ponds to support a variety of wildlife in aquatic and riparian ecosystems.
Seeds love snow. Many seeds require cool, moist stratification to germinate in spring. Some take a week, some take months, and some take a year or two. Buried in snow is ideal conditions for seeds that require stratification.
Send some of your plants to seed. This is because it shows what conditions the plant likes and how it prefers to grow. I have certain plants that I use to fill in empty spaces and others that I use to prepare spaces for slow-growing perennials.
Winter is also a great time to start your own plant nursery. Start your beds and pots using local, naturally pollinated, genetically diverse plants to help create stronger, more resilient ecosystems.
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Todd Wilhelm2024-10-01Had sod installed at my house in Amherst. Job done very quickly and well. Highly recommended. Will be using them again for spring 2025 project.
Md Mia2024-09-27RDK Tree Service removed a large maple by the power lines. It was definitely not a easy job. They did the job safely and did it rather quickly. I will definitely recommend them for your tree services.
Bike Lover2024-09-27Residing in Buffalo NY, and needed to remove a large tree in the backyard and front yard. The crew did a fantastic job with removing it along with the stump. We are so impressed. Thank you RDK!
selvachandran saravanan2024-09-25Did a job here in my rental property in Amherst of removing two 60-70ft pine trees with stump removal and prepped an area for parking. RDK Landscaping is the one you should go to with your tree and landscaping/hardscaping needs. They are just the best overall!!
jackary Rootis2024-09-24I highly recommend them. Great crew, Super easy to work with. They’re doing a great job out here in East Amherst. Not only did I use them, but my neighbor and their son did as well and we couldn’t be happier.
DIANE Abram: Toot-Toot Daycare2024-09-21I hope these pictures speak for itself. I had called couple of companies to my property in Northampton, Buffalo, but only RDK Landscaping had come out so quick to give a quote for a project we started and couldn’t finish. They were so quick, efficient and had completed the project in about 2 days. They did a beautiful job, and answered all my questions throughout the entire process. I am so very thrilled about the results and could not recommend more! They are doing wonderful projects.
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Andres Martinez2024-09-14Everybody at RDK Landscaping was a pleasure to deal with, we had a big project with them to clear up some really overgrown gardens beds around our garage, they went above and beyond making our space useable again. Once the project was complete they made sure to clean everything up and even cleared some weeds we had on our driveway that we hadn’t even mention to them. Can’t recommend them enough and will be calling them first for any future landscaping projects.
Esther Guess2024-09-12The guys were quick and effective at getting all that ivy down. Great work!
