I woke up this morning and was greeted by extremely chilly temperatures (it was 24 degrees this morning and it’s not even December yet!) and a lovely layer of frost covering my windshield. While I managed to get all of my garden projects done before the frost hit, I can’t help but be a little saddened that the gardening season is already over! If you, like me consider your weekends to be “too empty” without a gardening project or two, try one of these DIY winter gardening projects! They’re simple enough that they don’t require too much planning ahead and these DIY winter gardening projects are just the thing to fill your Saturdays with!
Build A Bug Hotel
A bug hotel? Say what? Yes! A bug hotel provides the “good” insects within your garden somewhere to rest up (and stay warm) come winter! To create, fill a large 5×12 inch box with pinecones, sticks, hollow sticks, seed heads, and wood shavings. The different materials will attract different insects (the hollow sticks bees, the pinecones ladybugs, etc) and the shelter should support them through the winter months. Some insects even leave eggs in the bug hotel, so keep an eye on that come spring!
Craft With Dried Seeds and Flowers
This is one of my favorite DIY winter gardening projects because I had SO many dried seeds and flowers when I cleaned my garden up for the winter! I don’t like tossing even my dried flowers, so I like putting them to use wherever I can. You can create “plant presses” and scented sachets from your dried flowers and the options are endless when it comes to using up your dried seeds! Use this article if you are looking for more ways to craft with your dried seeds and flowers.
Make DIY Seed Paper
Speaking of different ways you can use your dried seeds, how about you make your own DIY seed paper? With a few household ingredients (just printer paper and water) you can create little strips of paper to plant come Spring. The seed paper makes it easy to plant more than one seed at a time and it’s a super fun DIY winter gardening project to create! Get your kids involved and use my tutorial when it comes to making seed paper.
Make A Winter Wildlife Buffet
Keep the birds and squirrels fed this winter with a wildlife buffet full of their favorite foods! To create, place cranberries, oranges, nuts, and birdseed into a birdbath, fill with water and freeze. The buffet will add gorgeous color to your garden come winter and you can sit for hours and watch the birds and squirrels digging through the ice for their treat! Find more info here.
Learn How To Grow Succulents (Indoors!)
Succulents are tricky little buggers–and I can say this from experience! This winter, make it your mission to grow, care for, and propagate your succulents. If you are successful, try your hand and transplanting these succulents to your garden as soon as it is warm enough! Allow succulent soil to fully dry out between waterings and place in an area of your home that will receive as much as 4-6 hours of sunlight per day. Check out this guide for other succulent-growing tips and tricks!
Revamp Your Gardening Tools
If you’ve used the same gardening tools year after year, they might be looking a little dingy by now! To combat this, brighten up your gardening tools with a coat of paint. To create, place a bit of tape at the area of which you want the tape to end. I like to tape off my tools 3-4 inches after the metal meets the wood. Once taped off, hold your garden tool by the metal end and “dunk” your tools into a bin of paint, covering the tape slightly. Let dry, and dunk the tool again for the second coat of paint. When dry, peel off the tape and admire your new gardening tools! Catch the full tutorial here.
Plan For Spring
One of my favorite winter gardening projects is sketching out my garden design for the upcoming Spring. Winter is the perfect time to plan out your plots, and start purchasing seeds. When planning out your Spring garden, make sure you take into account how much sunlight your plants need. Those that need more sunlight should be placed further away from any “tall” plants (like corn) that may inhibit their growth. Learn more with my guide to a great garden design!
For more winter gardening ideas:https://beesandroses.com/2019/01/18/gardeners-almanac-a-monthly-guide-to-gardening-january/
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