Winter Garden Maintenance: Essential Tasks to Prepare for Spring

As winter comes to an end, your garden is gearing up for a fresh start. To ensure a healthy and vibrant landscape in spring, it's essential to carry out key winter garden maintenance tasks. From pruning and cutting back to soil care and tidying, here’s what you should focus on before the growing season begins.

1. Prune for Healthy Growth

Winter is the best time to prune many trees, shrubs, and plants while they are dormant. This helps encourage healthy new growth and removes dead or diseased wood. Some key pruning tasks include:

• Deciduous Trees & Shrubs – Trim back overgrown branches to maintain shape and structure. Avoid heavy pruning of spring-flowering shrubs like forsythia until after they bloom.

• Roses – Cut back hybrid teas and floribundas to an outward-facing bud, reducing them by about one-third.

• Fruit Trees – Apple and pear trees benefit from winter pruning to improve airflow and yield.

  
  

2. Cut Back Perennials and Grasses

If you left perennials and ornamental grasses standing over winter for structure and wildlife benefits, now is the time to cut them back.

• Herbaceous Perennials – Trim dead stems down to ground level to make way for new shoots.

• Ornamental Grasses – Cut back to about 10cm above the ground before new growth emerges.

• Lavender & Sage – Lightly trim to shape, avoiding cutting into old wood.

  
  

3. Pollarding and Coppicing Trees

For trees and shrubs that require regular maintenance, winter is the ideal time for heavy pruning techniques like pollarding and coppicing.

• Pollarding – Used for trees like willow and lime, this method encourages a dense canopy of new shoots.

• Coppicing – Common for hazel and dogwood, coppicing rejuvenates plants and provides strong, straight regrowth.

  
  

4. Tidy Up Garden Beds

• Remove fallen leaves, weeds, and any debris that could harbour pests or disease.

• Check mulch levels and top up with compost or bark to retain moisture and suppress weeds.

• Clear out old annuals and refresh soil in containers and borders.

  
  

5. Soil Preparation

• Aerate compacted soil – Use a fork to improve drainage and oxygen circulation.

• Add compost – Enrich beds with organic matter to improve soil health.

• Check pH levels – Test your soil and amend accordingly to create the best conditions for spring planting.

  
  

6. Protect Early Growth from Frost

Spring frosts can damage tender new shoots, so be prepared:

• Cover vulnerable plants with fleece or cloches.

• Delay pruning of borderline-hardy plants like fuchsias until new growth appears.

• Raise pots off the ground with pot feet to improve drainage and prevent frost damage.

  
  

  

  
  
  
  

7. Maintain Garden Structures & Tools

• Clean and sharpen pruning tools to prevent disease spread.

• Check fences, trellises, and plant supports for damage.

• Give greenhouses and cold frames a thorough clean to reduce pests and diseases.

  
  

Final Thoughts on Winter Garden Maintenance

By tackling these essential maintenance tasks before spring, you’ll set your garden up for success. Pruning, cutting back, and preparing the soil now will ensure strong growth, healthy plants, and a thriving garden for the months ahead.