The scariest part of Spring (for me) is removing the burlap on the boxwood hedges. Immediately, it’s evident how the boxwood fared under the difficult winter conditions. This winter, in particular, was tough on shrubs, trees, and everything else. There was no snow on the ground to insulate the plants when the deep freeze struck, and temperatures plunged into the high minus 30s C. It was beyond harsh!
As you can see from the photos, some of the boxwood has considerable winter damage. Thankfully, most of the boxwood was spared, especially the newly planted hedges in the back garden. Time will tell if the damaged shrubs will recover.
Another potential problem related to our strange winter was needle damage to the spruce trees on the back. The needles started turning brown in January! I had the arborist over to check them out, and he wasn’t sure if it was caused by drought or disease, in which case, I may lose my trees as there isn’t an effective treatment. Now that the frost is out of the ground, I have been watering, and the trees look slightly better. The tips show signs of new growth, which is a positive development.
On the plus side, the bulbs are poking out everywhere and seem to grow before my eyes! The hellebores are looking great, and on the weekend, I saw the first signs of growth in the peonies.
Roses are tricky! I wonder if even seasoned gardeners waffle to find just the right time to remove the rose collars and mulch that protect fragile roses over winter. It’s risky business! I did remove the collars and rake out some of the mulch, but with the freezing temperatures (and more snow!) this week, I hope I’ve left enough protection for them. So far, I see green stems on most of them. I also did not want to disrupt the ladybugs and other insects that may still be hibernating.
This past winter was a challenge, and with the local prediction for a hot, dry spring, our gardens may be stressed for some time. I think it’s time to invest in rain barrels!
xox Judy❤️