The risk we don’t see: How to care for conifers and evergreens in November

While deciduous trees and shrubs have already reduced their vital functions to a minimum that will help them survive the following months without major problems, green plants face one of the most underestimated risks – the so-calledphysiological droughteven if there seems to be plenty of water in nature. What is it about?

Frozen water in the soil is a problem

Conifers, thuja, but also rhododendrons and other plant species, which retain their leaves and needles even in winter, through which they breathe and also evaporate water, struggle with the mentioned problem mainly when the temperature drops below freezing. While more and more water evaporates from the green parts of the plant, the roots cannot draw additional supplies from the soil. They are frozen. Therefore, the plant is thirsty even when there is plenty of water around it. Unfortunately, it is in such a form that it is not possible to deliver it to its destination.

The YouTube video in the Recipes channel will show you more:

The dressing must be really hearty

So what should we do? they could make our evergreen friends survive the winter unscathed? It’s not that complicated, we just have to remember the necessary ritual in November really hearty toppings. The point is to water seeped deep into where it is after all a little more protected from the cold. She should get deep at least thirty centimeterswhich is not a little.

Sixty liters for one tree

Experts advise to water trees and bushes that will “live” even in winter, preferably less often, but really abundantly. If we had to define the word ‘heavily’, then it would be about sixty liters of water for one full-grown tree and for young individuals by roughly half of this volume. So it is obvious that gently watering the garden watering can will not solve anything. At the same time, we should water until the time when the ground begins to freeze.

Mulch is a good help

It will be convenient to keep the roots as warm as possible cover the soil surface around them with mulch. It can be bark, wood shavings, leaves, or perhaps also wood shavings, which we spread around the trunk like a warm duvet. Not only will such a measure help retain moisture in the soil, but most importantly prevents water from freezing. The roots will be better insulated from large temperature changes and will have the opportunity to absorb the water we supplied them for longer. All of this together increases the chance that evergreen plants will survive a relatively harsh winter in good health. We just shouldn’t forget that the mulch should be in place even before the first frosts appear.

Beware of the winter sun

Let’s also realize that the lack of available water caused by frost is not the only winter attack on plants. It can also become a problem harsh winter sun combined with freezing wind. While the sun warms the tissues even in this period, which leads to a greater release of water, the freezing wind damages them and the roots are unable to replace the loss of water. Therefore, it is better to ensure more sensitive individuals mechanical wind protection. It can be, for example, about jute, reed mats, possibly aspen. Such a measure fulfills a double function: it provides shade from the sun and at the same time limits the drying effect of the wind.

Save the fertilizer for next spring

While we have already talked about watering as a necessity, it is just the opposite with fertilizing. An absolute ban applies to nitrogenwhich would only encourage the growth of new shoots, which would be immediately eliminated by the frost with great certainty and thus we would expose the whole plant to unnecessary stress. So it’s clear that November care for conifers and evergreens therefore involves water, mulch and mechanical protection. But we must not underestimate even one step, otherwise we could only cry over the destroyed trees and bushes in the spring.