Winter garden prep: Follow these tips in winter for a successful garden come spring

Winter is a good time to make new paths or wall in your garden. (Stock photo)

Even though gardening season is over for the year, there are plenty of things that you can do in the cold winter months to prepare your garden for spring planting.

November: Clean up, compost and cover crop

"If it's still nice outside in November, you can go ahead and prune shrubs and clean out your garden, getting rid of any old vines and plants," says Beth Preston, co-owner of The Plant Lady in Cape Girardeau. "You can also put organic compost, manure, or leave mulch in the garden area now, as that will give it time to break down into the soil during winter."

If you are finished harvesting crops from your garden, a cover crop is a good choice to plant in November.

"Plant a cover crop like annual rye now, and then next spring, till it into the soil," says Paul Schnare, owner of Sunny Hill Gardens and Florist in Cape Girardeau. "This will increase the amount of organic matter in the soil."

December: Get inspired, hardscaping and make soil more tillable

"My advice during the cold winter months is to read some inspirational gardening magazines or books and dream of spring!" says Preston.

This is also a good time to make new paths or walls in your garden and to purchase some hardscaping at a bargain price.

"Rocks, statues and other objects of interest as well as many other gardening supplies are always marked down when the season is over," says Preston.

December is also a good time to apply gypsum to your garden space.

"Applying gypsum will break down the clay and make the soil more tillable," says Schnare. "That should be done in the wintertime."

January: Great time for a soil analysis

Both Preston and Schnare agree that January (or anytime during the cold winter months) is a good time to get a soil analysis done on your garden spot.

"If you are using the same garden spot year after year, or if you have moved to a new location, you should get a soil analysis," says Preston.

The Missouri Extension will provide the analysis, and details are available online.

"By sending in the soil sample, you can see if the soil needs lime or other nutrients applied," says Schnare.

February: Start ordering and planting certain vegetables

By February, green thumb enthusiasts can begin gardening again!

"If the weather is warm enough, many people are starting their gardens around February," says Schnare. "You can usually plant thing like lettuces and leafy vegetables then. Cole [cold season] crops like broccoli, cauliflower and kale can be started in your basement in February, and then planted in the ground in late February or early March."

In February, Preston encourages gardeners to start looking at catalogs for seeds and plants that they wish to plant in their spring gardens.

"The catalogs will start coming out after the first of the year," says Preston. "Just follow the instructions [regarding planting] on whatever your order."

Gardeners need to remember that this area is zone six when they are ordering seeds and plants.

"The United States is divided into [planting] zones based on things like when it frosts, when spring comes and how low the temperatures get in winter," says Preston.

Preston also advises keeping a gardening journal each year.

"Whether you do it online or in a spiral notebook, keep a record of what's been successful and unsuccessful for you," says Preston.