Is it necessary to cover a pine tree for the winter? The winter is coming

Coniferous trees are distinguished by their extraordinary decorative properties - blue fir trees, lush firs, thujas, and junipers often decorate personal plots. As a rule, they are quite winter-hardy and can easily tolerate the cold under snow cover. However, some “southern guests” and any young growth require additional winter shelter: they are threatened by both freezing and the usual “spring burns” for conifers.

The first thing that needs to be done to ensure that young trees and exotic trees survive the winter without loss is to provide them with moisture-recharging irrigation. In late autumn, before the first frost, pour an average of 5 buckets of water under the root of each planting: the soil will freeze less and in early spring trees will be protected from traditional coniferous damage.

When considering how to cover conifers for the winter, remember that most of them have a shallow root system and need additional insulation trunk circle. For this, use fallen pine needles, sawdust, spruce branches: cover the soil well around the trunk - in harsh winter this will protect the roots from freezing.

Next you will need to cover the trees themselves. For this purpose they are used various materials: most often it is pine, spruce spruce branches, burlap, spandbond, roofing felt, lutrasil. It is strictly not recommended to take polyethylene and other “non-breathable” materials - this leads to plant rot, fungal diseases, and burns.

Selecting a covering material for coniferous plants is not easy: on the one hand, it must provide them with protection from frost, and on the other, from winter burns, which trees usually receive from January to March. If you use artificial non-woven materials (spunbond, agrotex, etc.), remember that you should not allow the trees to overheat, do not wrap them tightly, and leave ventilation holes in the hut.

Experts, explaining how to insulate conifers for the winter, do not recommend starting this before mid-November. Plants should be slightly hardened and accustomed to sub-zero temperatures. When frosts reach an average of -7 degrees, tie the plants with twine, then wrap each one in burlap and cover it in several layers with the selected material.

If the plant is brittle or fragile, you cannot tie it - you will need a special frame, which can be bought at any garden center. You can make a frame in the shape of a pyramid or cube yourself - from wood or thick wire. Place a frame over fragile trees, then cover it with burlap. Cover the tree with covering material, for example, spruce branches, in 2-3 layers.

The spruce branches can be fastened with a garden stapler, wrapped with twine - the constructed hut should be as resistant to winds as possible. In such a shelter, a coniferous tree can safely overwinter until the onset of stable heat. The hut should be dismantled gradually, at the end of March at a temperature of 0 to +5 degrees. First, the spruce branches are removed layer by layer, and a week later, the burlap is removed.

It is traditionally believed that coniferous plants do not need any special preparation for frost; they are the main decoration winter garden, beautiful and persistent. In many ways, this is true - adults and other coniferous plants that have been growing in the garden for several years, as a rule, do not care even about the harsh Russian winters. However, even for them it is worth carrying out some preparatory activities during the autumn period. And young coniferous seedlings often die without surviving the first winter in a new place.

Let's try to avoid this.

Oddly enough, most often conifers die in winter not from frost, but from sunburn and drought. In case of rapid air warming in spring (or during winter thaws), the needles begin to actively work, evaporating moisture. At the same time, the roots, located in the still frozen ground, cannot yet replenish the moisture supply. The plant begins to dry out. To avoid this, in the autumn, before the onset of cold weather (October-November, when the ground is not yet frozen), abundant moisture-recharging irrigation is carried out for conifers. At least two buckets of water are needed for each plant, depending on its age and size, as well as how dry or rainy the autumn was. It is also recommended to protect young plants with sunny side screen or wrap with covering material. In this case, the use of plastic film is unacceptable - it will cause fungal diseases during thaws.

Dwarf cultivars of coniferous plants are usually the least frost-resistant. Some of them can easily overwinter under snow cover.

Coniferous plants that are especially poorly tolerant of frosty winters are Canadian hemlock, western thuja, juniper varieties, black pine, Weymouth pine, Serbian spruce.

Coniferous plants that are regularly pruned endure winter much worse than plants that grow freely; they are more vulnerable. In regions with harsh winters, it is advisable to completely cover such conifers for the winter. Plants placed in pots and containers can be moved to a bright room with an air temperature of about plus five degrees Celsius.

In winter, conifers are at risk of branches breaking. Snow poses a direct danger in this sense. It is advisable to sweep or shake it off in a timely manner, without waiting for the breaks. It is better to tie vertically growing conifers (thuja occidentalis “Smaragd” and “Columna”, vertical varieties of junipers, hemlock) not even too tightly with twine. At the same time, the branches should not be compressed too tightly to prevent the needles from heating inside the crown.

Newly planted young plants may be weakened by fungal diseases and insect pests before winter. Therefore, at the end of summer or autumn, it is imperative to treat the plants with specialized preparations designed to combat diseases and pests of conifers. It is advisable to periodically inspect young plants and promptly begin to deal with emerging problems.

All feeding of conifers with nitrogen-containing fertilizers is stopped before the beginning of August. This is necessary so that the growth of young shoots gradually stops and the shoots begin to ripen. Fertilize with phosphorus-potassium fertilizers.

By the way, the branches of some coniferous plants turn yellow in winter (this is green pseudohemlock, some varieties of common juniper). There is no need to be afraid of this - in the spring they will return to their normal appearance.

Coniferous plants planted this year do not have time to develop powerful rhizomes during the season and become stronger to survive in harsh conditions. winter conditions. Young plantings need protection created by different ways using factory or homemade designs.

The optimal time for covering plants is dry weather that sets in with the arrival of stable cold weather. It is recommended to place protective materials on frames that ensure the integrity of the branches and optimal ventilation.

We purchase ready-made shelters.

Purchased designs are ready-made kits, easy to install and do not require additional devices. Among the many options, you can always choose shelters that are suitable in shape and size.

The frames of these products are made of polymer or metal tubes, bamboo rods or fine mesh. Non-woven fabrics are used as protective material, allowing air to pass through and maintaining a dry atmosphere inside the shelter, for example, Snapbond or Agrospan.

We cover the homemade frame with purchased material.
Another way to organize a winter shelter is to separately purchase the required amount of non-woven material, which allows you to save about half the money. In this case, the base for securing the canvas is built with your own hands from thick wire. Homemade arcs are installed crosswise over the plant.

The synthetic fabric is stretched over the frame and pinned with wire pins.

We use wooden supports and burlap

For the manufacture of simple frame You will need four pegs twice the height of the covered coniferous plant. ends wooden slats They are knocked down with a nail and the racks resembling a compass are installed in place. It is better to stick stakes into the ground in advance, without waiting for it to freeze.

With the onset of persistent night frosts wooden base cover with burlap, fixing the fabric with bent wire pins or stones.

We collect spruce spruce branches

Spruce branches serve as an excellent winter shelter, which additionally protects plants from rodents. Created under thorny branches air gap well ventilated and less subject to temperature changes. Spruce branches are harvested exclusively from healthy trees; you cannot use infected needles and transfer diseases to young seedlings.

Long spruce or pine legs are perfect for shelter - they are folded over the plant in the form of a hut, tied at the top with twine. But the short shoots remaining after the formative pruning of mature trees are also used. First, wire arcs are installed on top of the bush. Then the frame is covered with cut branches.

The result is an ideal shelter that saves the coniferous plant from the ice crust in winter.

Another advantage of spruce branches is that they do not rot and do not contribute to the proliferation of destructive microorganisms.

We protect the root system.
The trunk circles of coniferous seedlings are mulched with some kind of organic matter, spreading the material in a loose layer at least 5 cm thick. A mixture of soil and leaves is well suited for covering the roots. Left under the bush in the spring, it rots and serves as additional feeding.

The coniferous plants remaining in the containers are dug into the ground for the winter or a blanket of sawdust is placed near them.

The ground part of the seedlings is protected by any of the available methods.

Each of the structures considered begins to be ventilated when the spring rays of the sun melt the snow around it. First, the northern side is opened slightly, and after the soil thaws, the protective material is completely removed.
Winter shelter for young coniferous plants is one of the means to increase the winter hardiness of plantings. It should not be taken as the only method that guarantees a safe winter. Experienced gardener always carefully approaches the preparation of plants, paying attention to planting, watering and fertilizing.

Autumn is the time when at the dachas and personal plots you need to think about the coming winter and how to keep the plants from freezing. Having coniferous plants on your property is prestigious, luxurious and beautiful. They take a long time to grow and you certainly don’t want just one winter to significantly spoil the appearance of the beauties. This is especially true for young conifer seedlings.

If the ephedra grows in a container and is not too bulky in size, then the most in a fast way protection from frost - bring it indoors. However, this is not always possible. Therefore, the ephedra in a container is covered with spruce branches for the winter. The branches are laid around the container using the “hut” method. If possible, place bags filled with straw or sawdust under them. Since in winter the winds can be strong and even stormy, it is better to sprinkle the spruce branches with additional soil.

When, then the measures for sheltering for the winter are slightly different from the previous option. First they insulate trunk circle conifer with a layer of sawdust, straw, peat or pine needles. Next, wrap the barrel with non-woven spunbond material, which is resistant to weather changes, or with burlap. Tie it down so the wind doesn't blow it away. Polyethylene films They are not suitable for covering coniferous plants for the winter; they put the tree into a state of blockage. It is advisable to install screens for protection from wind and spring sun.

If the coniferous plant is spreading, then in winter the branches may break due to snowfall, so to cover them for the winter, the branches are tied and another equally important device is built - a canopy or screen from the wind. If for some reason it was not possible to make a canopy, then after each heavy snowfall, try to appear on the site to shake off the snow from the branches. If after a snowy winter the branches still break, then the small ones are removed and the large ones are pulled together. Cedar, pine and cypress are especially affected by this.
Tall conifers (juniper or thuja) are quite difficult to cover for the winter, but tying the branches is quite possible.

Mature cedars, yew, fir, spruce and pine trees, whose age exceeds 4-5 years, do not need to be covered for the winter, only young seedlings.

In the spring, when the sun begins to appear, coniferous plants often receive sunburn. This can be determined by yellowed needles. This is very serious damage, so it is better not to remove any shelters until the end of April, in particular this applies to awnings, screens and windings. It is better to do this in cloudy weather. A in the fall, before frost, you need to water and mulch generously so that the conifers can tolerate temperature changes as painlessly as possible.

After winter, if the coniferous plant has lost its color, then shade it and lightly spray the branches warm water, and when the outside air temperature is stable at +10°C, treat with the biostimulant “” or “Zircon”.

Due to their characteristics, coniferous trees are loved by many summer residents. Due to the fact that these plants all year round remain green, the garden looks elegant in any season, and the variety of crown shapes allows you to create original landscape compositions on your site.

Caring for coniferous plants is not difficult; special care Only rare, isolated varieties need it. Therefore, covering conifers for the winter should be done only in isolated cases. You will learn on this page how to place conifers on the site and how to insulate conifers for the winter.

Even just conifers in the garden are already a guarantee of the beauty of the site. The very appearance of these plants, their leaves-needles and crown shapes provide a special, “universal” image that can be combined with any shapes and lines, any color scheme and various style directions.

However, the most valuable thing about conifers in garden design is that they are plants easy care and add beauty to the site in any season of the year. They make the garden all-season. Not every plant can boast of a combination of all these qualities at once. The design of a garden with coniferous plants looks especially original, because all conifers are different, and among them there are stunningly spectacular specimens. Most conifers can be safely planted in your garden, and with minimal care they will delight you all year round.

It is necessary to place coniferous plants so as to emphasize the planning lines of the site.

You need to place them in places where the appearance and shape of your conifers will emphasize the shape of the relief, the shape of structures and structures in the landscape, the configuration of paths and other landscape objects.

It is good to place them at the entrance to the house and to the site.

Look at the photo: conifers in the garden will look good next to stairs and retaining walls.

You can place them at forks and bends of paths and along the perimeter of the site.

Just like trees and shrubs, they will be beautiful next to gazebos and next to recreation areas.

A great place for coniferous plants is on lawns as “soloists” and in garden modules.

The design solution is the location within the “coniferous gardens”.

A good place for conifers is in the “dark” corners of the site (with insufficient lighting or “inconvenient” for development).

One conifer can be placed in the center of the front area of ​​the site, from the entrance to the house. A passage (path) must be organized to this place. This will be a conifer “for the New Year”.

Conifers are especially good as hedges.

Crown shape of conifers (pine, larch, spruce, etc.)

Below is a table that describes the crown shapes of coniferous plants, including the crown shape of spruce, the crown shape of larch, the crown shape of pine, juniper, yew, microbiota and cypress.

Table “Crown shape of coniferous plants”:

When choosing conifers for your garden, first of all you need to pay attention to the appearance, height, shape of the crown, type and shade of the needles. You can see what kind of crown different conifers have in the table.

Caring for coniferous plants: fertilizing, watering, pruning

Feeding coniferous plants. For the first time, be sure to feed in early spring, after melting snow, with a special fertilizer for coniferous plants. If your site has poor soil, you can repeat this procedure in June.

Watering coniferous plants. During the season you don’t have to water; usually coniferous plants have enough rain. However, if there is extreme heat and drought in the summer, water 2-3 times.

Pruning coniferous plants. It is necessary to prune when there is strong thickening, if this affects appearance plants. You need to trim if you want to shape your conifers specifically, for “designer” purposes. You can prune to encourage branching so that your conifers become more “fluffy.”

Preparing conifers for winter: how to cover conifers

No conifers are afraid of frost. But some of them, especially “varietal” conifers, are afraid of strong sun and drying wind. They do not freeze, but dry out, “burn out.” After this, they recover for a long time, and in some cases die completely. Preparing conifers for winter is easier than preparing deciduous trees or bushes. Before covering your conifers for the winter, sew regular covers from spunbond or lutrasil in the form of bags with ties at the bottom. Sew the covers by first measuring the height and width of the plants. But you can’t just put the covers on: under the weight of the snow on the covers, the tops of the conifers can bend or even break. Therefore, first, before the ground freezes, drive a high block next to each plant (slightly higher than the plant itself), and only then can you put on the cover. The timber will prevent the cover from touching the top of the tree.

For low spherical conifers, you need to use cucumber arches placed crosswise over the conifer.

How to prepare and insulate conifers for the winter

Before preparing conifers for winter, sew covers for thujas, cypresses, all types of junipers, for Konika spruce and all miniature conifers. Ordinary and pine trees do not need shelter, but only 3 years after planting. So all newly planted coniferous plants, regardless of the type, will have to be covered for 3 years. Remove all shelters when the snow has completely melted. But everything happens during the winter. The shelter can be blown away by the wind. The shelter may be too thin for a particular place (sunny), may coincide sunny place and a small amount of land under the coniferous tree, for example, it is planted in a garden module. One way or another, the ephedra can burn. If approximately 80-100 percent of the crown is burnt (it is yellow-orange), then no coniferous plant is restored. It will need to be replaced. If approximately 50-80 percent of the crown is burned, juniper and konika spruce will not recover; they will recover in a year, black pine - in 2 years. If less than 50 percent of the crown is burned, the juniper will recover in a year, the Konika spruce will partially recover in 2 years, and the pine and thuja will recover by autumn.

Features of the life of coniferous plants in the garden

In rare cases, conifers may not take root; perhaps you have not fulfilled any of the four requirements given below:

1. Conifers depend on the cardinal directions. This must be taken into account when purchasing and planting. When purchasing from a nursery, pay attention to how the ephedra grows, where its north side is. Tie a ribbon there. This also applies to plants in containers. They are unlikely to be constantly turned, especially large specimens. When you brought the conifer to your garden, orient it correctly and turn the seedling to the cardinal points. When planting, you need to position the plant so that the northern side of the seedling (the side with the ribbon) coincides with the northern direction on your site.

2. One of the features of the life of coniferous plants in the garden is that their roots love oxygen. Therefore, when planting, you need to dig up the soil 2-3 times to saturate it with oxygen.

3. Autumn is not suitable for planting conifers.

4. Conifers are afraid of such a natural phenomenon as “ice rain.” So shelter won't hurt anyway.