Gardening in low temps can still be successful, master gardeners say

Garden plants can still endure with some care and patience even as temperatures drop into the teens and single digits, according to local master gardeners. Cold hardy vegetables and native plants are some of the main plants that can make do throughout the winter and cold snaps that send temperatures below freezing. Native plants can bring tender wildlife like birds and butterflies to your garden, but are still tough enough to weather the region's temperatures, said Master Gardener Joy Moore. "Temperatures can swing a lot in our area," Moore said. "We can go from very cold to very hot, have cold winters and hot summer days, and we can have periods of drought and periods of a lot of rain. But the natives will usually come through all right." Master Gardener Earl Hockin has previously harvested hardy vegetables like winter spinach, some broccoli and cabbage. Those were planted in the fall and stopped growing in November or December. Root crops like parsnips, carrots and beets can survive cold temperatures as well and can be additionally protected through a covering of mulch. Using a garden fabric, such as a cover made of polypropylene, can help protect vegetables while letting through rain, keeping out pests, letting in around 70% of sunlight and trapping heat, Hockin said. "I have used that and on occasions what I've done is sort of a double layer during time periods like this," he said. Kale and brussel sprouts do not need a cover in the winter. Spinach can survive in temperatures as cold as five degrees. Leeks and garlic need cover when it drops below 20 degrees, and lettuce can survive down to 28 degrees, and if covered with two layers, may survive down to zero degrees. Hockin makes hoops for his covers, about 30 inches high and out of flexible plastic pipes, and puts them over raised garden beds. "Another thing to do if you don't have more of [the all-purpose garden fabric] is cover it with sheets," said Hockin. "Add some sheets or blankets on top during this really cold period." Using a garden fabric cover can remain useful for plants that don't need to be pollinated in the warmer months. "It keeps the pests, the insects, from eating them and attacking them," Hockin said. "Things that need to be pollinated, beans, tomatoes, all those things, I have to take it off so the pollinators can get to them." Any plants particularly vulnerable to frigid whether, especially potted plants, should take refuge inside. Prioritizing their hydration is important, too. "Going on through the winter, if it's cold and not getting up moisture, you can still make sure that they're well watered," said Moore. Parts of a garden that haven't fared well through the winter can still find new life as mulch or compost. Making new additions to your outdoor garden right now would be "kind of tough," Hockin said, but he takes this time of year to start seeding plants indoors. "I've already got down in my basement broccoli, cabbages, spinach, winter hearty lettuces, all sprouting and I'll be putting them into my garden beds in late February, early March, covered with the fabric and they'll be fine," Hockin said. Hockin also starts sweet pea seeds indoors in Feb. between layers of wet paper towel in a plastic bag. As soon as the roots start sprouting, he starts planting them in his beds two inches deep so he can harvest them in June. There are tasks gardeners should avoid throughout lower temperatures too: fertilizing and pruning. One thing they should embrace: patience. "Just wait, give it plenty of time, things may be all right," said Moore. "You don't want to be pulling up things prematurely that might still be alright." Jorgelina Manna-Rea is a Report for America corps member reporting on issues relating to the environment for Six Rivers Media.