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Protect your plants from winter damage in 3 easy steps

Last year’s severe winter caused a lot of damage to plants.  It’s easy to prevent that with a little preparation.

Follow these three easy steps to prepare your garden for winter and minimize damage next spring.

1.  Clean Up & Prune

Clean Up:  There are two schools of thought on fallen leaves:  Rake and bag them to keep garden beds looking good; or mow and mulch them into landscape beds where they’ll nourish and improve the quality of soil.

If you like clean beds for the winter and remove the leaves, be sure to apply a fresh layer of mulch to protect perennials and bulbs through the winter months.  Remember, the goal is insulate the ground to prevent the freeze-thaw cycle.

If you mulch leaves back into your beds, be sure to chop them up with a mulching mower so they break down quicker and turn into nutrients.  Oak leaves can take up to seven years to decompose if they’re not chopped up.

Prune:  While dead wood can be pruned any time of the year, pruning live wood can be done when you’re putting your garden to bed.  The golden rule of pruning is:  Prune before 4th of July and after Halloween, but not in between.  Timing depends on the type of plant. Spring-blooming plants should not be pruned in the fall.  For more information, check out our blog on pruning tips. 

Many homeowners experienced die back on plants last winter because pruning was done at the wrong time of year.  Pruning encourages new growth.  Prune in the summer, and that new growth won’t have time to harden off before the cold winter sets in.  That could result in severe die back or plant loss.

2.  Protect from the Wind

Cold, drying winds are the most damaging to plants.  Protect them with a screen of burlap to create a windbreaker.

Drive wood or metal stakes into the ground around the plants to be protected – about two to six inches from the edge of the plants.  Attach burlap to the stakes to the full height of the plant.  Do not put burlap over the top or wrap the plant directly.  Two rows of burlap may be necessary for tall plants.

It’s safe to install this burlap screen around Thanksgiving or during December.  Most importantly, get the stakes in the ground before it freezes.

For areas where there is more wind exposure, such as hills, near lakes, or wide open space, add a second layer of burlap for added protection. If in doubt, it’s always better to overprotect.  

Don’t let the burlap touch the plants directly.  This holds in too much moisture that can create fungus.  And keep burlap off the top of the plant.  This would allow snow to collect, which could crush the plant.

To protect garden roses, cut the plant back 10 to 12 inches tall so it fit inside a rose cone.  Or use a rose collar, which you put around the base of the plant and fill with mulch to protect the crown from freezing.   Both of these need to be removed in the spring, around the end of March, before the plant starts actively growing.

Winds cause damage by blowing the moisture out of the stems, evergreen leaves or needles that cannot be replenished because the ground is frozen.  Burlap acts as a windbreaker and reduces the drying effects of the wind.

3.  Snow & Ice removal 

A snow-covered landscape is good to insulate and protect plants from the wind.  However, piling snow onto plants when shoveling walkways or driveways can have the opposite effect.  Snow becomes very dense and compacted, often turning to ice, which will cause freeze damage and can crush plants.  Keep shoveled snow off plants.

Road salt or sodium chloride can be harmful to plants.  It seeps into the ground and dries out the roots of plants. 

Try a safer solution called Ice Vise with Traction. Ice Vise with Traction comes in a 50 lb bag for $24.99 and it’s safer for your grass and plants while melting the ice!

 A few steps now will keep your landscape looking great for years to come.  

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English Garden Nurseries & Garden Centers Serve the Greater Clinton Twp., Dearborn Heights, Royal Oak, West Bloomfield, Eastpointe, and Plymouth Ann Arbor Michigan Areas

Providing garden centers complete with full service landscaping, seasonal holiday stores including their enchanting Christmas Stores, and most locations even offer a full service in house florist

English Gardens Detroit MI area nurseries & garden centers are not only the areas largest garden nurseries, but they offer the largest selection of products and services found anywhere in the Clinton Twp., Dearborn Heights, Royal Oak, West Bloomfield, Eastpointe, and Plymouth Ann Arbor Michigan regions providing full service garden centers, full service landscaping and landscape design, seasonal holiday stores including their enchanting Christmas Stores, the largest selection of Patio Furniture in Michigan, and most locations even offer a full service in house florist for flower arrangements for every day as well as those special occasions such as wedding flowers, event flowers, sympathy and funeral flower arrangements, prom flowers, and more!

Our nurseries and garden centers have the areas largest selection of plants, flowers, shrubs, annuals, perennials, and patio furniture. Garden supplies are in abundance, with everything from garden tools and accessories, to garden and potting soil, mulches, bagged garden stone, pots and so much more. We have everything you need for your outdoor gardening needs.

Landscaping? Count on the professional landscape contractors and designers at English Gardens to Make Your Property Beautiful! We offer both DIY landscaping assistance and full service landscape design and construction with our in house landscaping company.

Our floral designers can create perfect floral arrangements for weddings, events, funerals, proms and the like. Make the moment beautiful.

Our Christmas Stores in addition to being one of the areas best holiday experiences, are filled with live and life-like artificial Christmas trees, including flocked artificial Christmas trees, and those sometimes hard to come by 9 foot flocked artificial Christmas trees, as well as a large, ready to take home inventory, of 3 foot artificial Christmas trees, 4 foot artificial Christmas trees, 5 foot artificial Christmas trees, 7.5 foot artificial Christmas trees, 9 foot artificial Christmas trees and 12 foot artificial Christmas trees, and all of the other holiday items you need like Christmas lights, decorations, Christmas wreaths & garland of all types, and unique gifts. Make the Holiday beautiful!

English Gardens store by store offerings in the Clinton Twp., Dearborn Heights, Royal Oak, West Bloomfield, Eastpointe, and Plymouth Ann Arbor Michigan areas;

Clinton Twp. Garden Centers:

Dearborn Heights Garden Center:

Royal Oak Garden Center:

West Bloomfield Garden Center:

Eastpointe Garden Center:

Plymouth Ann Arbor Garden Center:

Be sure to visit any one of our Garden Centers for the largest selection of products and services the area has to offer. If you have any questions please call one of our stores directly in Clinton Twp., Dearborn Heights, Royal Oak, West Bloomfield, Eastpointe, and Plymouth Ann Arbor Michigan for friendly, prompt help.

Clinton Township, MI

Address
44850 Garfield Rd. at Hall Rd.
Clinton Twp., Michigan 48038

Phone Numbers
Phone: (586) 286-6100
Fax: (586) 286-0033

Dearborn Heights, MI

Address
22650 Ford Rd. at Outer Dr.
Dearborn Heights, Michigan 48127

Phone Numbers
Nursery: (313) 278-4433
Florist: (313) 565-8133
Fax: (313) 278-0459

Eastpointe, MI

Address
22501 Kelly Rd. at Nine Mile Rd.
Eastpointe, Michigan

Phone Numbers
Phone: (586) 771-4200
Fax: (586) 771-4894

Plymouth/Ann Arbor, MI

Address
9900 Ann Arbor Road W.
Plymouth, Michigan

Phone Numbers
Phone: (734) 453-5500

Royal Oak, MI

Address
4901 Coolidge Hwy,
Royal Oak, Michigan

Phone Numbers
Phone: (248) 280-9500
Fax: (248) 280-2688

West Bloomfield, MI

Address
6370 Orchard Lake Rd. at Maple
West Bloomfield Township, Michigan

Phone Numbers
Phone: (248) 851-7506
Fax: (248) 539-4738

Patio Furniture from English Gardens of Michigan

Patio Lounge Chairs
Patio Furniture Showrooms
Bistro Sets
Outdoor Dining Sets
Outdoor Sectionals

Make Life Beautiful! Come to English Gardens Today!

Don’t forget to come visit our enchanted Christmas Stores! We have by far the areas largest display of pre-lit and unlit Christmas trees, both Live and Artificial Life-Like Christmas trees in all sizes and varieties, the areas largest selection of Christmas lights in a variety of lengths, sizes, bulb types including energy efficient, and long lasting ,state of the art, LED Christmas lights, Christmas Garland, Christmas wreaths, Christmas decorations, and that perfect gift for that special someone!

Make Christmas Beautiful! Come to English Gardens This Christmas, It’s Fun For The Whole Family!

When it comes to the holidays other than Christmas, you won’t be disappointed, From July 4th, to Labor Day, Columbus Day, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Easter, Mothers and Fathers Day and more, you guessed it, you can count on English Gardens to Make the Holiday Beautiful!

Make the Holidays Beautiful! Come to English Gardens!

At the end of the day, we all enjoy putting a smile on our, and other’s faces, come to English Gardens at any one of our convenient locations and Make Today Beautiful!

Make Today Beautiful! Come to English Gardens!

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