WINTER DAMAGE Jack Frost a fiend to tender plants NOW IS the time we can all expect to receive a steady stream of cheerful visitors. In most cases, all will be wei- come for this is the time of year we open our homes and hearts to any who come before us. Of course, if your name _ is Scrooge, some of the visitors you are about to receive may be as welcome as a case of the flu. Not all the spirits of Christmas can be expected to bring good cheer. And, as none of us look forward to visiting our loved ones in jail, the hospital, or worse, let's keep the spirits and cheer off the roads this season. As usual I digress. There is one visitor we all have mixed feelings abovt. Jack Frost, Esquire can create many breathtaking wintery scenes for which we can only be grateful. But what of the damage he can cause? The following is an attempt to provide you with all you never wanted to know about frost and were too uninterested to ask. After the relatively mild fall we have en- joyed to date it is easy to forget the devastation Mr. Frost was respon- sible for last winter. Remember the Alaska Blaster? The Concise Oxford Dictionary defines frost as ‘‘Freezing; prevalence of temperatures below freezing point of water; ... frozen dew or vapor.”* Learn anything new yet? Well, what if I told you that frost flows like water. It is easy to understand when you remember that warm air rises and cold air ‘flows’ in to take its place. What does this have to do with you? Let us say that your garden was at the bottom of one of the creek valleys or ravines that exist in most areas of the North Shore. Cold air and even frost could flow into your landscape from the colder regions at the higher elevations above you. This being the case, you should be more careful about winter pro- tection for your garden than your neighbors on the slopes above you: a fittle extra mulching around tender plants, a little more thought given to the selection and place- ment of borderline hardy plant materials, some consideration for the creation of ‘air dams’ to deflect this flowing frost; all with an ounce of prevention in mind. Frost will not only freeze the moisture in the air, it can also freeze the moisture in your plants. This will be the origin of most of the damage dealt to your plants over the course of this coming winter. The most obvious method of destruction is tissue damage caused when the root system of your plant freezes solid. Once thawing occurs and the plant requires ground water, it will collapse without an effective root structure to supply its needs. The bark on the twigs and bran- ches of certain trees such as the flowering cherries can split as a result of severe frost. As sap freezes, it expands and bursts the thin, cambium layer just beneath the bark’s surface. Think of last winter’s problems with broken pipes. The open wounds that result are not in themselves a great threat {although not good cither), but they do leave the plant open to in- vasion. Make new fridge look built-in REPLACING AN outdated or worn-out refrigerator can be a great opportunity to give your kitchen a stylish, built-in look — even if you don't want to forfeit the deep, roomy shelf design of conventional models. The job need not demand 2 ma- SILVER FRAMES .. for that different gift. Finished with 6 coats of lacquer and so are maintenance free. 7 S5 Bees ysis everything that looks built-in really is. First, check the space available. The fatest refrigerators have great- ly improved insulation, so they can provide more inside capacity without increasing outside dimen- sions. Some of these roomy, energy-efficient appliances can be HANDMADE WINE GLASSES Various sizes reg. $10 ea. $°750 Se ere VICTORIAN CHRISTMAS ORNAMENTS from °10 Hostess gifts, stocking stuffers and more installed in a space as small as 29” wide by 30°’ deep. Next, consider cabinetry. To teduce the apparent weight of a refrigerator enclosed in a stock cabinet pull the adjacent base cab- inets forward to match the front See Achieve Page 25 CRYSTAL SALAD BOWL Big enough for the whole family by RIEDEL CRYSTAL § 9 9 Reg. $140 | Ras ho WINE GLASSES Caan Some opportunist insects and diseases see this as an invitation to dinner. Be sure to clean these wounds as you see them and apply a coating of pruning paint. Your plants do possess some ef- fective defences. The most impor- tant of which are the sugars and over the garden gate Geoff Tobiasson starches present in the sap. These act much the same as anti-freeze in fowering the point at which freez- ing occurs. This ‘anti-freeze’ is produced more abundantly by those plants that have had the benefit of a good source of phosphorus and potassi- um during or near the end of the growing season. Bonemeal is an excellent organic source of phosphorus, while com- posted seaweed has ample supplies of potassium. Practical .«. for practically. anyone! HAPPY FACE STORAGE Bright colours, perfect for $19” toys, laundry, wastepaper ... THE EARRING WARDROBE Easy to use for all earrings 15,1989 - North Shore News .LIFESTYLES Although there are fertilizers designed specifically for winteriz- ing the lawn, the first line of defence in this area of the garden should be a prominently displayed Keep Off The Grass sign. Broadleaved evergreens such as rhododendrons suffer another form of frost-generated winter damage. As Jack turns the moisture in the air to ice crystals, the air drops in relative humidity. This drier air can ‘suck’ out the moisture retained in your plant. This circumstance alone can cause dehydration in the leaves of some broadleaved evergreens; but when compounded by many suc- cessive days of ground frost and/ or exposure to bright winter sun, the results can be devastating. This dehydration, or desiccation as it is properly known, appears as ‘burned’ patches on the foliage. Anti-desiccants such as Wilt Pruf will help to reduce the water loss and therefore the damage. Care in placement relative to freez- ing winds and dry winter air along with attention to the exposure to winter sun should do the rest. So, even if you can’t knit some nice woollen scarves and mittens for your valued possessions in the landscape, there are still a few things that you can do. If Mr. Frost should come and call, be ready for his decidedly bad breath. And sow it grows.