Before the first snowflakes fall, it is better to take a few precautions to protect your garden from snow. Because if the snow can have benefits for your garden, it can still damage certain plantations and reserve you unpleasant surprises in the spring.

Install winter covers

Depending on your location, it can be frequent, between November and mid-March, to be confronted with more or less abundant snowy episodes. Before your garden is covered with a white coat, it may be wise to install tarpaulins or winter sails.

Light and breathable, these veils allow the plants covered with them to benefit from light and rainwater without being smothered. They will also be protected from frost because the tarp wrapped around their branches will allow them to retain their own heat.

Useful for your potted plants, your fruit trees or those not sensitive to low temperatures, wintering covers can also be installed in your vegetable garden to protect your winter crops such as your lettuce, cabbage or spinach.

How to install a winter cover?

For trees and plants, cover the upper parts (branches, leaves, trunks and any pots) and secure the tarp securely with straps to prevent the wind from tearing it off. During a snowy episode, remember to shake the sail to prevent the weight of the snow from damaging your plants.

To install a tarp in your vegetable garden, you can simply cover your plants and block it to the ground with stones. You should know that there are also tunnel systems with frames that will allow you to come and collect your crops regularly without having to handle too much of the tarpaulin and therefore not causing your plants to lose too much heat.

Note: many perennials will not need protection, as they can withstand very low temperatures (down to -10°). For these plants, such as acacias for example, snow can even have a beneficial effect, acting as an insulator for their leaves which will protect them in particular from frost and cold.

Read alsoThe benefits of snow in the garden

Prune the branches of your trees

One of the biggest dangers when snow falls is the buildup of weight on the branches which can break them and damage the bark and trunk of your tree. Before the first frosts, go around your trees and cut the most fragile branches. Once the snow has fallen, shake the branches to make it fall. This will relieve the branches which will then be able to breathe better.

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Straw and sand: your best allies

If perennials are often not afraid of snow, it is still advisable to protect their roots from more extreme temperatures. To do this, you just need to mulch the feet of your plants. Thus, the plants will not only be preserved, but the straw thus installed will feed the plant and therefore benefit from more abundant flowering in the spring.

To clear your driveways or avoid freezing, do not use salt and prefer the use of sand. The salt risks burning your plantations while the sand will allow you both to prevent slipping and to have a neutral action for your flowerbeds and your lawn.

Good to know: even if the temptation to run or dive into the immaculate snow that covers your garden is great, avoid, if you can, packing the snow by walking on it. Indeed, compressed in this way, it can suffocate the soil of your garden and asphyxiate your lawn or your plants. The tight layer of snow created by trampling can additionally freeze and will take longer to be absorbed by the ground.