mulching solution???

A word of warning, if you are not into gardening, this post will SO not be interesting.  It involves a brainstorm on my part on how to overwinter my foxglove seedlings and actually get them to bloom next year:

 

Ever since I spotted the seedlings I've been consumed with what I could do to successfully keep them alive (I've never had luck before) until next Spring.  I came to the conclusion they weren't getting the protection/mulch they needed to hold up against the drying winter winds and cold temperatures.  Usually the wind blows any kind of mulch material off the beds where these foxglove seeds germinated.  It occurred to me over the weekend if I put in a little fence (along the edging of the bed) it would help contain the leaves and mulch??

 

What do you think??  Does this idea have potential???  When my oak tree starts dropping leaves, instead of composting them, I plan to dump them inside this fence and hope like heck it works.....

Comments

[Mother Nature's Garden]

I mulch with leaves in zone 6 and have foxglove reseed and make it through winter. I have a smattering. I am hoping for more this year. I sprinkled lots of seeds.
Donna

[themanicgardener]

I think it sounds brilliant and looks great.

Once everything dies back, you could lay a board over the mulch, or a floating row cover tacked down with garden staples, which can be removed in spring. Good luck!
--Kate

[Racquel]

Great idea Kathleen. I wish you luck & will cross my fingers for you. It sounds like it just might work.

[Marnie]

I like the fence, with our without mulch. It looks nice.
Marnie

[Anna]

I hope it works cause they are expensive to replace. Any insulation is a better chance than none. I like the fence.

[Shady Gardener]

Sounds great, Kathleen. One little suggestion is that full-sized oak leaves aren't dense enough in the pile to provide as much insulation as you might like (or I), so I shred the leaves before using them as mulch. Then I blow them off in the Spring with the leaf-blower (and a careful raking). I like the idea of your fence and adding a lightweight board might be fine, too. But in this case, right next to the house, it may not be necessary. :-)

[Gail]

What we do to keep our flowers! One year I used an old hanging lamp shade as a cloche cover. it worked very well.

I like the little fence and mulch can't hurt...people wrap their shrubs to protect them.

Gail

[Beckie]

Super idea! The fence should do the trick and as a bonus looks really good too. Hope it works.

[nawlins dawlin]

I agree with Beckie... looks good and sounds like it will work to me.

[Sylvia]

Sorry but I had to chuckle, keeping foxgloves is not a problem in the UK! I find quite big seedlings under plants, that have escaped me weeding them. I think this method will work because foxgloves grow naturally on wood edges so get a covering of leaves. I have seen them fighting their way through bracken as well. Good luck, I hope you get lovely foxgloves next year, I am looking forward to seeing the pictures.

Best wishes Sylvia (England)

[Alice]

My foxgloves were in a protected spot and always did really well...we wound up pullng them all out when we got our puppy because he was obsessed with chewing on them. I wonder if you tried some kind of hay or straw like I do with my strawberry beds if that might work? wouldn't look great, but it might stay put. The fence is beautiful too.

[Kathleen]

That's so encouraging Donna, since I'm only 1 zone lower than you. Good luck with your seeds!

[Kathleen]

Thank you for the great idea of the row cover Kate!!! It's exactly what I need to keep the leaves inside the fence and not blowing out.

[Kathleen]

If it works Racquel, you'll be seeing pics of beautiful foxgloves next spring on my blog! :-)

[Kathleen]

Thanks Marnie. Believe it or not that fence is plastic!!!! The heavy duty kind but it doesn't look like it, does it?? I installed the whole thing for less than $20.00. If it works, it will be money well spent!

[Kathleen]

I agree about the insulation Anna. That's what I've been missing I think?? We'll see come spring....

[Kathleen]

Thanks for the suggestion Shady Gardener. It's a good one except I don't have a blower, mulcher, vacuum thing. :-( I guess I need to get one of those too?? or I could put my aspen leaves in the fence instead? That might work better. Hmmm...

[Kathleen]

Crazy isn't it Gail?? All this trouble for one kind of biennial!! I still hope I can make it work tho. Very creative using the lamp shade for a cloche too!

[Kathleen]

Thanks for the good luck wishes Beckie and Nawlins Dawlin. Hopefully I'll be smiling come spring!

[Kathleen]

Oh I wish I had that problem Sylvia! Isn't it funny how we try to have plants that aren't really hardy to our zone? I really want the English cottage-style garden but don't live in that kind of climate! So if this trick doesn't work, I'll just have to enjoy pictures on other peoples blogs, like yours! :-)

[Kathleen]

Awww, that makes me sad thinking about you pulling all your foxgloves up Alice. I always forget if every part is toxic or just the roots?? I guess "better safe than sorry." I hadn't thought about straw ~ that might be a good possibility too. I'm so glad I posted ~ I received so many great ideas. Thanks for adding yours!

[kerri]

The thing that kills a lot of foxglove seedlings is being heaved out of the ground in the spring. They're very shallow rooted. Try to remember when spring arrives, to push them back in and tamp the ground around them. The mulch should surely help too.

[Kathleen]

That's terrific advice Kerri. Thanks for passing it on to me. It makes sense and I will try to follow it come spring.