How-To Library

Preparation is key for a great growing season, which means thinking about organizing your garden, starting your seeds, and setting your soil up for success.

When winter chills strike we can put on a sweater, crank up the heating, or put another log on the fire. Your pets grow a winter coat but it is not always enough.

During the winter, you and your animals are not the only ones seeking warmth! Like most of us, when it’s cold, many pests will relentlessly attempt to find their way indoors. Here are a few tried and true preventive measures to keep your home safe from pesky intruders.

Winterizing your chicken coop can protect your flock from cold weather hazards such as frostbite and hypothermia. With attention to a few details, your hens will be happy and continue laying eggs throughout the cold months.

Harsh winter weather can be hard on the valuable shrubs in your landscape. A few preparations in the fall will get them ready for the long winter months ahead. Preventing desiccation, protecting the roots from temperature fluctuations, using caution while pruning and keeping an eye out for damage or pests can keep your plants healthy until spring.

As the temperatures start to drop (and the snow begins to fall in some parts of the country) your goats will need a little TLC to stay healthy and warm. Winter can be a stressful time for livestock and pets. Owners can help reduce that stress by providing adequate shelter, routine feeding/watering, and steady illness prevention.

Although the majority of perennials and trees are dormant this month doesn't mean the garden can be ignored. Dormancy actually helps with some of the opportunities for projects this month.

A cold frame is exactly what it sounds like: a clear outdoor frame that protects plants from cold weather, while still letting sunlight in. Providing a warm and protected space in your garden for spring seeds will allow you to get a head start on your gardening season. Cold frames, usually made of lumber or hay bales and old windows or glass shower doors, are the perfect way to control the climate in your nursery beds. Not only are they very easy to make and use, but a well-constructed cold frame can last you for several years to come.

Winter is almost upon us and the list of outside gardening tasks will be less. However, you can turn a good amount of your organic garbage into better produce and flowers next year with the investment of a little work on your compost heap. Hot composting, cold composting, or both, now is the time to start and/or maintain them.

When the weather outside is frightful what is the horseback rider to do? That fire may be delightful, but we can't just sit inside and sing let it snow, let it snow, let it snow. It's our responsibility to maintain a fitness program for both horse and rider during the winter months. Inclement weather can definitely put a damper in your riding plans, but there are still ways to keep both you and your horse fit during the winter.

One of the saddest things about changing seasons and colder weather approaching is seeing dead plants and bare spots in your garden and yard. If you're looking to spruce up a barren yard, then evergreen shrubs are the perfect solution to fill that space in. Evergreens are not only aesthetically pleasing but can serve many other purposes depending on where you plant them and what you are planning to use them for.

Proper nutrition during the winter months is crucial for all livestock, including beef cattle. It's estimated that winter feed makes up more than half of the annual cost of keeping a beef cow. Maybe you can't tell the difference between 15 and 32 degrees F after spending a few minutes outside, but your cattle can. Slight changes in temperature can have a considerable impact on energy and cow nutritional requirements.