Should I Water in Winter?

Q:  “Do I need to water in the winter? Nothing is growing!”

You’re correct. What we see above ground seems dormant, but the fact is, they have a tough row-to-hoe in a cold, snowy, windy winter. Just as humans can get windburn, from too much cold air hitting us, so can plants, only we can cover up or go inside. Plants can’t. Winter is dry, which draws moisture out of everything. In plants it’s called dessication. This means the plant can’t take up water as fast as the moisture is being drawn out of their leaves. Some of the hardest hit plants would be any broad-leafed tree or shrub because there’s more surface for it to lose the moisture from. If the mulch around the plant is adequate and if there’s enough rainfall, then the plant should be fine. But if the soil is bare and the rain just hasn’t come, then a slow watering is a good idea.

Keep this in mind if you have cold season crops you’re trying to stretch, or plants in pots outside.

Sherrie Ottinger, The Tennessee Dirtgirl