January

January is a good month for Kansas City gardeners to take a bit of a “breather.” If you are an intensive gardener, or if you have a large landscape to take care of, you can certainly use a break. Take time to reflect on the past growing season, review your successes and failures, and make some mental notes on how to improve your garden. If you keep a garden journal, now is an excellent time to review it. If the new year will bring the opportunity to expand or renovate an existing space, the winter months are an excellent time to contact your favorite designers or horticulturalists to begin planning. This is a month that often brings snow and ice, so pay attention to plants that may be adversely affected by heavy accumulations.
 
Generally speaking, it is best to let the plants fend for themselves—you can often do more damage to the plants trying to remove snow and ice. However, if it looks like branches may be broken by extra snow weight, you can try to sweep or brush snow off; lifting and brushing snow from the bottom up works well. Don’t try to remove ice from encrusted branches—that process almost always causes more damage than the ice itself. If you do have limbs damaged by snow or ice, prune or saw them cleanly as soon as possible. To aid in walking through the garden in winter, use sand, birdseed, vermiculite, or similar materials instead of harsh salt or ice melters to combat icy paths. Additionally, try to avoid walking on frozen turf, as this will usually damage grass plants leave unsightly brown patches in the lawn. Don’t forget our feathered friends this month, as snow and ice often cover their sources of food. Feeding (and watering) birds in the winter will help develop resident populations the rest of the year, and those birds will definitely help keep pesky, damaging insects in check.