December Gardening

December is here and those sleigh bells will soon be ringing! This week we consider how to overwinter a favorite Boston fern as well as administer some other important garden tasks.

Many of you have enjoyed a Boston fern or ferns on your porch or patio this past season and, due to the recent relatively mild temperatures, may find that your fern is still relatively healthy and attractive. This being true, you may hesitate to discard it and may be wondering whether it is possible to preserve it for the next growing season. Read on for some pointers.

The basic idea here is to allow your fern to go dormant but not to allow it to freeze. Ferns appreciate a resting period before they return to their full growth mode. Provide this by reducing temperatures to discourage new growth and maintain root health. Temps between 40 and 55 degrees are desirable.

The first signs that your fern is entering dormancy will be that its fronds will turn brown and wither and begin to shed. This shedding is normal but can be somewhat messy. The solution is to give your fern a haircut. Trim off all unsightly dead and dying fronds and runners down to a couple of inches above the soil line. Leave any newly sprouted fronds intact.

Keep your fern in a garage or other area protected from the severe cold and rain. A low light level is acceptable, for the plant will be putting on very little new growth. As for watering, it will need only a very limited amount of moisture. Water either a little each week or a little along as you see a fresh frond sprout arise.

Withhold fertilizer when overwintering Boston ferns. A plant that is not actively growing needs no additional nutrition.

When temperatures rise in the spring and when all danger of frost is past, it is time to return your fern to its normal spring time growing conditions. Morning sun and afternoon shade are ideal for Boston ferns. Be sure to give it a good dose of fertilizer and water and it will be well on the way to providing you with much pleasure for yet another season.

Hoes, rakes, shovels, and shears are expensive garden tools. It is easy to prolong their life by following a few good habits.

First, rinse tools with fresh water as soon as you are finished using them. This will remove dirt, which left on wooden handles causes them to deteriorate quickly.

Next, paint boiled (not raw) linseed oil on wooden handles a few times a year. Let it soak in overnight, then wipe off with a clean rag.

Use sandpaper on rough wooden handles. They will feel much better to the touch. After sanding, give the handles a linseed oil treatment.

Spray a lubricant like WD-40 on the blades to protect them from rust.

Hand pruners and loppers can be sharpened after hard use. First, disassemble the pruner or lopper and put the handle in a vice. The blade should face upwards so as to be accessible from all sides.

Second, use a whetstone lubricated with oil. Shine a light on the blade to see the manufacturer’s original bevel.

Holding it at the correct bevel angle, slide the whetstone up the blade from the base to the tip of the blade. Use several light strokes. Strive for a uniformly bright and sharpened edge.

Slide the stone against the flat backside of the blade once or twice to break off the tiny metal curls that formed when the beveled side was sharpened.

I hope these suggestions will aid you in your gardening achievements this month!

Tim Lewis is a Georgia Green Industry Association Certified Plant Professional, gardening writer, former Perry High School horticulture instructor, and former horticulturalist at Henderson Village and Houston Springs. He and his wife, Susan, own and operate Lewis Farms Nursery located on Hwy 26 two miles east of Elko, where he was born and raised. He can be reached at (478) 954-1507 and timlewis1@windstream.net.

HHJ News