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If you grow any cherished plantings, consider protecting them from the hungry bunnies of New England. My young roses, clematis and blueberry bushes have all be victims of bunny scissor teeth. Once the snow falls, the bunnies are on top of the fresh snow and see your garden from a new elevated position. They seem to get less picky about what looks good to chomp on in the winter. Sometimes, they do not even eat the branches. They are just trying out their sharp, new teeth. It is infuriating to find all the freshly pruned stems on the ground. Especially, if you love blueberries blossoms. I recommend making cages to protect your more precious bushes. I purchased (on Amazon) wire fencing with 1-inch spacing holes which is 2 feet tall (link: https://a.co/d/j7Qdzpt). Once you get it, cut it into 5-foot sections. The cutting is the hardest part. Then, you can round out the 2-by-5 pieces to fit most any rose or blueberry bush. I staked the cages into the ground with left over metal irrigation stakes. The cages can stand up without support. The irrigation stakes secure the cages to the ground. Staking down the cages made me feel so much better because nothing could crawl underneath the cage. I used black colored wire fencing and I hardly notice the cages once the plants leafed out. I used black zip-ties to secure them together. I even trimmed the zip-ties extra bits off. I really wanted my garden to look picture perfect, but after the bunny pruning event of that winter, it was war with the bunnies who had stolen all my blueberry dreams. I am all about making my garden beautiful and edible.
Did you know that Marblehead has five garden clubs? Well, if you have ever wanted to learn more about them, now is your chance! On Thursday, Dec. 4 (4-7 p.m.) as part of the Marblehead Christmas Walk Festivities you can view each garden club interpretation and decorations of a fireplace mantle at the King Hooper Mansion on 8 Hooper St.
You can also visit on Saturday and Sunday Dec. 6 and 7 (10 a.m.-5 p.m.). The King Hooper Mansion is the home of the Marblehead Arts Association. It is a free and public event. Have a good look around. This year’s theme is sparkle. If you see a mantle that strikes your interest, take note of which club decorated it. Chances are the creators and their gardening friends are hovering nearby just waiting to snare a fresh, new, young gardener. Introduce yourself and you will suddenly be the most popular person in the room. This is exactly how I joined the Cottage Gardeners of Marblehead and Swampscott.
The benefits of joining a garden club surprised me. I am not a crafty person, but I learned how to make Thanksgiving arrangements that impress even my Mother in Law, who had the same home-ec teacher as Martha Stewart! No one needs to be a master gardener to join, some people do not even have gardens, yet. The real bonus is the people you meet and the gardens you get to tour around Marblehead. For example, you could regularly get to know the King Hooper Sculpture Garden which is a peaceful sanctuary or the historically significant Jeremiah Lee garden or tour a bird sanctuary you never knew existed. Joining a garden club offers its members more than any podcast or Youtube tutorial video, if offers a life long friendships.
Now, about arranging flowers, I still have a lot to learn. What I do not have in composition or photographic talent, I make up for in flowers. This morning it was 35 degrees and I just went outside and snipped a few flowers, in november. I am blessed to have a flush of roses and was amazed to have enough chrysanthemum to fill my bucket! Talk about stretching the season!
Once more thing, if you have any water fountains in your garden, it is time to unplug them now. If possible, drain the basin and remove the pump. At the very least, cover it up. If you don’t have a water feature, you have all winter to watch this video on how to make one for under $60. https://warblerfall.com/. I could show you how I made mine, but this woman’s video is excellent.
Marblehead resident Colleen Connor is co-president of the Cottage Gardeners of Marblehead and Swampscott and the first columnist for The Independent.
