Maintaining Wild Tips
by Besa Schweitzer, chapter member
Prepare for our first hard frost by putting away hoses. Winterize ponds, rain barrels, bird baths, and other water features. Clean house gutters and rain barrels of leaves and fallen debris. Ponds with fish must be deep enough that the fish have space below any ice.
Winter wildlife really appreciate running water. Birds still need to drink and bathe and will crowd the fountain on a warm winter day. In water features left on over winter, water needs to be heated so that it remains unfrozen.
Buried turtles, frogs, and other reptiles and amphibians are sometimes unearthed in the fall and winter. They should be returned to their hibernation spot underground quickly so that they can continue hibernation without waking.
Safely dispose of yard waste. It is a common practice to dump yard waste into forgotten corners at the edge of our neighborhoods. Usually there is a neglected creek nearby which is polluted by all the extra organic matter. Even some municipalities that collect yard waste will dump it near a stream. All the extra nutrients from decaying yard waste can pollute a stream causing algae blooms and fish kills. Make sure that your yard waste is being composted a safe distance from streams.
Check trees and shrubs for “volcano” mulching, mulch piled high around the base or trunk of the plant. If found, pull back the mulch from the trunk and create a “donut” instead. Trees want no mulch against the base or trunk of the plant because a heavy layer of mulch around the base can lead to girdling roots as well as foster insect, disease, and rodent problems.
Continue watering year-round as needed, especially if soils are dry. Check new plantings regularly in winter to see if they have enough moisture.
Now is the ideal time to plant trees and shrubs. Before digging the hole, prepare the site by loosening the soil well beyond the drip line of each plant. Plant trees and shrubs at the depth where the root tissue meets the trunk tissue, there will be a slight bulge, not deeper. Remove all wires, ropes and non-biodegradable materials from roots. Spread roots out so they are not tangled or rapped around the trunk before backfilling. Apply a 2-3 inch mulch layer, but stay several inches away from the trunk. Keep the soil moist, not wet, to the depth of the roots.
