Gardening Tips

Water your CT Garden with Confidence

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By: Heather Zidack, UConn Home Garden Education Office

Watering is an essential skill for gardeners that is often overlooked. “How often should I water and how much?” is a frequent question with new gardens or when establishing new plants.  

There’s no magic formula for watering your plants. The soil texture, local climate, and even the metabolism of your plants can affect how often water needs to be replenished. So how do we know what to do? Over time, experienced gardeners form a sense of their soil and their plant’s needs, and perfect their watering practices.   

Pepper plant growing in a garden bed with a drip irrigation hose nearby.What plants really need 

Most established garden plants require about 1 inch of water per week from rainfall and irrigation combined. When mother nature doesn’t provide this through rainfall, we can supplement by adding about 0.62 gallons of water per square foot in a garden bed.  However, actual needs vary with soil type, weather conditions, plant species, and stage of growth.   

Knowing your soil texture can help you anticipate what your watering schedule might look like. Sandy soils are known for rapid drainage, which often means they require more frequent watering. Clay soils, on the other hand, hold water for longer periods and generally need less frequent irrigation. Plants also have preferences for different soil types, many of which are related to water availability and drainage. Choosing the right plant for the right site can help ensure it receives adequate moisture. 

A plant's water demand may vary depending on its stage of growth. For example, we tend to encourage additional support for plants that are fruiting/flowering, or plants that have just recently been transplanted. Keep a close eye on these plants and their water needs during stressful periods. Newly planted trees, shrubs and perennials need this additional monitoring and support through their first year of establishment in the landscape. You may find that you’re watering them more frequently during this time. This can be totally normal.  

Sometimes, soil can appear dark even when it hasn’t been watered, so don’t rely on appearances alone.  Your hands are one of the most reliable tools for checking soil moisture. Dig a few inches below the surface and feel the soil. If it feels cool and slightly moist, watering can likely wait. If it feels dry and crumbly, it's time to water. If the soil feels saturated or releases water when squeezed, allow it to dry somewhat before watering again. 

Water Deeply 

Giving your plants a good soak does more than just help them in the short term. Deep watering provides a slow, thorough soak that reaches the plant’s root zone rather than just the soil surface. This encourages deeper root growth and can improve drought tolerance, often allowing for less frequent watering. For most vegetables and perennials, water should reach at least 6–12 inches into the soil. Trees and shrubs may benefit from moisture penetrating even deeper into the root zone. 

Apply water slowly at the dripline so it soaks in without pooling or running off. Use a soaker hose, or a regular hose on a slow trickle over the root zone of your plants. Avoid high-flow sprinklers, since they may cause runoff. Keep in mind that water movement depends on soil type.  

Check the soil every so often to ensure that water is penetrating deep enough and set a timer for yourself. After a few watering cycles, you will become familiar with the timing and flow rate for your specific soil and plants. 

Stay Consistent 

Don’t automatically change your watering habits just because the temperature changes.  Hot weather can increase water demand, but it is essential to always check the soil first. During periods of heat and drought stress, plants can close their stomata and reduce water use as a survival mechanism. While this may slow water uptake, plants still need adequate soil moisture. Overwatering, however, may not be helpful. Instead, roots can sit in saturated soil and develop diseases like root rot. Always check the top few inches of soil to ensure water is needed. 

When weather starts to cool off in the fall, continue your watering practices. By watering until the ground freezes, you help your plants, survive the winter. The effects of winter burn can be reduced when evergreens enter the winter properly hydrated.  

Watering is an essential task in the garden year-round. It is important to know your plants, your soil, and the climate you are growing in to ensure you are giving your plants enough hydration. By watering only when needed, watering deeply, and continuing these practices well into the fall, you will be sure to have healthy plants year round! 

The UConn Home Garden Education Office supports UConn Extension’s mission by providing answers you can trust with research-based information and resources. For gardening questions, contact us toll-free at (877) 486-6271, visit our website at homegarden.cahnr.uconn.edu, or reach out to your local UConn Extension center at extension.uconn.edu/locations.   

This article was published in the Hartford Courant July 11, 2026

What’s Going Down with Your CT Basil This Summer?

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By: N. Raymond and Emily Leahy, UConn Home Garden Education Office

What's Going Down with Your CT Basil This Summer?
By: N. Raymond and Emily Leahy, UConn Home Garden Education Office 

Basil growth is ramping up as we enter July. As these tasty plants begin to flourish, it’s important to keep an eye out for a pathogen known as downy mildew. Basil downy mildew (Peronospora belbahrii) severely impacts numerous varieties of basil (Ocimum spp.)  worldwide. The disease, caused by an oomycete pathogen, is especially prevalent in sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum). Oomycetes, also known as water molds, behave similarly to fungi yet are equipped with different structures and means of infecting plant material. Using water or water-based secretions, their reproductive cells (known as zoospores) adhere to the surfaces of plant tissue to inoculate their hosts.  

Leaves suffering from basil downy mildew exhibit yellow/pale discoloration (chlorosis) and browning on their upper surfaces. Chlorotic lesions expand and become necrotic, with leaves eventually falling prematurely. Small sac-like structures develop on the underside of leaves and are visible as purple-gray dots. These are called sporangia, which are specialized structures that can form, store, and release spores. Basil downy mildew prefers moist and humid conditions that encourage the growth and development of the pathogen.  

P. belbahrii must occupy a living host to survive and reproduce, making it an obligate parasite. The pathogen can only overwinter in warm environments where hosts will not freeze during cold temperatures. Sporangia germinate on hosts under high humidity and moderate temperatures. The germ tube of P. belbahrii enters basil leaves through microscopic openings called stomata where it can grow, expanding what is known as its hyphae network (filamentous growth structures of fungi and oomycetes) between plant cells. As the disease progresses, P. belbahrii will colonize the leaves, stems, and seeds of its host. Symptoms are often visible within 5-10 days of inoculation. However, infected hosts may also appear asymptomatic. Typically, sporulation of P. belbahrii occurs at night in conjunction with moist and humid conditions. Sporangiophores break through stomata on the underside of leaves, from which sporangia are released and travel to inoculate new leaves. Extended periods of leaf wetness, accompanied by moderate temperatures and high humidity, encourages prolific growth of P. belbahrii.  

Basil downy mildew can be controlled through cultural and chemical methods. Since P.  belbahrii thrives in moist conditions, it is crucial to maintain proper air circulation and space between plants. This can be achieved by planting at appropriate distances when you start your garden, or by thinning your plants later in the growing season. Planting seeds that are certified free of the pathogen minimizes the potential for disease as well. Utilizing drip irrigation or similar efficient watering systems can decrease standing moisture on and around basil plants. Avoid overhead watering or sprinkler systems. Fungicides are labeled for effective use against this pathogen, if chemical control is deemed necessary. Some cultivars with resistance to basil downy mildew are included in the table below.  

Type  Variety 
 

 

 

 

Sweet 

 Amazel 

Everleaf 

Evi 

Eleonora 

Prospera 

Prospera Active 

Rutgers Devotion 

Rutgers Obsession 

Rutgers Passion 

Rutgers Thunderstruck 
Purple  Red Rubin 

Prospera Red 
Scented  Sweet Dani (lemon) 

Lime Basil 

Our colleagues at Cornell have performed quite a bit of basil downy mildew research, which can be accessed at https://www.vegetables.cornell.edu/pest-management/disease-factsheets/basil-downy-mildew/. Visit this link to learn more. 

Have a question about plants? The UConn Home Garden Education Office supports UConn Extension’s mission by providing answers you can trust with research-based information and resources. For gardening questions, contact us toll-free at (877) 486-6271, visit our website at homegarden.cahnr.uconn.edu, or reach out to your local UConn Extension Center at extension.uconn.edu/locations. 

 

This article was published in the Hartford Courant July 4, 2026

Discussing Gardening Resources on CRIS Radio

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CRIS Radio: Focal Point 6/1/2026

Heather Zidack from the UConn Home & Garden Education Center talks to host, Stephen Thal, about the cool spring we've had and the number of gardening resources out there for people to explore!

Transcript

00:00:00 Stephen Thal 

Hi, welcome to another segment on Focal Point. This is Steven Thal and we've been hosting many programs lately and we're hoping that you're enjoying them. 

Some of them have been updates on other programs like today is going to be the gardening program of course. 

00:00:19 Stephen Thal 

Every year it's different because a lot is based on the weather and some of the new fertilizers they've developed and some of the new resources. 

00:00:29 Stephen Thal 

For example, you may not be aware of some apps that are available that may help you with your gardening. 

00:00:36 Stephen Thal 

So without further introductions, we're going to ask Heather Zidack from the UConn Plant and Science Center in Storrs, Connecticut to help us put all these facts together. 

00:00:48 Stephen Thal 

And we'd like to thank her for coming on because they're in the process of moving. So that's adding a little more stress, but she always enjoys our programs. 

Heather, what's up? 

00:01:02 Heather Zidack 

Hey, Steven. Thanks for having me today. 

00:01:04 Heather Zidack 

Like you said, we're in the middle of that move, but it's pretty exciting. 

So my office, the UConn Home Garden Education Office in the Plant Science Department has moved to a new place on the Storrs campus. We are directly across from the Dairy Bar. If you're familiar with the UConn Dairy Bar and you ever get to make a trip out here, we are right across the parking lot from them. 

00:01:29 Heather Zidack 

And it's my office, which offers the home gardening advice as well as our soil lab and our plant diagnostic lab. 

00:01:36 Heather Zidack 

So it's really cool to have all of us in the same hallway so that we can work a little bit better to get more plant and gardening information out to the public. 

So it's an exciting time, but I'm happy to be here today to go through some of these plant resources with you as well. 

00:01:53 Stephen Thal 

Okay, so how do you want to start? Is the weather the culprit in all of this or? 

00:01:59 Heather Zidack 

Yeah, it's been a very cold, very cool spring. And so we're seeing a lot of stuff is kind of slow to wake up this year. There are plants that are not leafing out as well as we're used to. 

00:02:17 Heather Zidack 

We've been getting pictures from clients asking us, Is it still alive? What do I do with it? And our biggest thing right now is telling everybody to just wait a couple more weeks. 

00:02:26 Heather Zidack 

We're hoping that the weather is going to warm up a little bit, become a little more consistent so that we can start really getting out there into the garden and so there are plants that are going to start looking like we're used to. 

00:02:39 Heather Zidack 

Different parts of the state are also experiencing very different things. 

So I had a client talk to me about this the other day where their trees are fully leafed out and everything looks great. But as they were driving through the state, they noticed some places where it looks like it's not as fully flushed out yet. 

00:02:55 Heather Zidack 

So a lot of it has to do with the cool. But we also had a drought last fall or at least dry conditions that also contributed to some of it. 

00:03:03 Heather Zidack 

So our biggest thing is just telling people to wait right now and watch things grow. We're hoping that things will be lush and green really soon. 

00:03:13 Stephen Thal 

Okay. So I should mention, perhaps might be early, but people should be aware that there may be resources in their own area that could help them with getting ready for their spring and summer gardening experiences. 

00:03:32 Heather Zidack 

Yeah, absolutely. 

00:03:34 Heather Zidack 

So a couple resources that are available through UConn. There is our office here, as I mentioned, the Home Garden Education Office, and we answer questions via e-mail, telephone, and walk-in visits. If you have plants that are looking, you know, a little unhealthy or you have some garden insects that's eating your tomatoes, for example, and need help identifying it, we can certainly help with that through those three venues. 

00:04:03 Heather Zidack 

There's also regional extension offices, and every county in the state has one. They are staffed by the Master Gardener Program, which is a volunteer-based program. 

Our Master Gardeners do one semester course, 60 hours of volunteer time, and they are very knowledgeable. So they're throughout the state. The Master Gardener coordinators are available to help with some of these things as well. 

00:04:30 Heather Zidack 

If you do have concerns with plant diseases, we have the plant diagnostic lab here in Storrs where samples can be sent in at any time. And our lab with their brand new facility, they're very excited to be looking at setting up some new tests this year as well to expand their services. 

00:04:48 Heather Zidack 

And finally, the soil lab is also here in Storrs. We're all in the same building now.  So they help with like soil nutrition and stuff like that. 

00:04:55 Heather Zidack 

So there's a lot of local places that you can get really good information. 

The extension program is pretty wide across Connecticut, and we're here to help gardeners make the right decisions and identify any issues that are coming up in their garden. 

00:05:10 Stephen Thal 

Now, if they have certain bugs or something, shouldn't they save little containers so they can catch these little varmints and send them off to you? 

00:05:20 Heather Zidack 

We recommend, yes. If there are any pests in the garden, we can take a look at them. 

We recommend that you put them into a little container and put some rubbing alcohol into the container to kill the insect before we take a look at it. But we definitely can. 

00:05:35 Heather Zidack 

Our specialty is in the garden specifically. So if it's in the home or insects that are affecting your pets or things like that, we don't have that expertise, but we can help with anything that is in the garden, yes. 

00:05:51 Stephen Thal 

Okay, so we're ready to go. So what do we need to prepare for a good garden this year? 

00:05:57 Heather Zidack 

So one of the things I wanted to talk about is how everyone gets their information when they're getting ready to start the garden. 

There's a lot of information out there right now, and we have access to so many different resources that it's really important as gardeners to kind of be a little bit, you know, scrutinize your information a little bit, make sure that it's the right source, make sure it's accurate, and things like that. 

00:06:24 Heather Zidack 

There's a couple of different things that are becoming more and more popular as sources for gardening information that I wanted to talk with you about today. We can go through them and talk about things that you should look out for, things that they're good for. 

00:06:43 Heather Zidack 

The first one I want to bring up - It's been around for a long time, but finding your garden information on the Internet is really, really a good source. 

There's a lot of good information out there, but it's really important to be cautious of what you're reading. So if you're especially on social media, you can see a lot of misinformation. You can see a lot of trends and opinions on places like that. 

00:07:10 Heather Zidack 

If you're looking for really accurate gardening information, you want to look at extension websites for extension programs like UConn Extension or any .edu or .gov site. Every state has their own extension program. So those are really good resources that we partner with for research and things like that so that the information is shared and verified across these different programs. 

00:07:38 Heather Zidack 

You want to learn the credentials of who's presenting the information to you. Are they like a horticulturalist or are they looking for just clicks to get your engagement on the internet, right? So are you talking to a, you know, a professor or faculty? You know, someone from the USDA, someone from extension, things like that. 

These people are professionals who are educated in the field, whereas sometimes there's information coming from people who don't necessarily have the background or the research to back up the claims. 

00:08:11 Heather Zidack 

So really important to check your sources, look for those EDUs, those .govs, those extension pages, look at who's giving you the information and then go ahead and verify, find another source on the internet that has that information. 

So maybe you can find it from more than one source and it is accurate, but just be a little bit cautious with what you're looking at to make sure that it's what you are actually looking for and giving you the right information for your area. 

00:08:40 Stephen Thal 

Okay, so now what happens if you don't have a computer? Where can you get the information? 

00:08:46 Heather Zidack 

So a lot of times people can go to libraries to get a lot of that information as well. There are some really good books out there. 

It's a really good thing to bring up that we don't want to forget that gardening books still have a lot of good information. A lot of the times, although we are doing a lot of research and learning a lot of new things, some of the tried and true methods are still going to be the same. 

00:09:11 Heather Zidack 

There's still a lot of factual information in some older texts that we still do today. For example, we still prune trees the same way that we have for many, many years. We still plant our seeds in the same way that we have for many, many years. So going to some of those texts can be a really helpful option as well. 

00:09:33 Heather Zidack 

And libraries will offer you that access to the Internet, access to those those texts. 

00:09:39 Heather Zidack 

The other thing, you can always call us if you have any questions. There's plenty of resources out there for people to get the right information they need. 

00:09:48 Stephen Thal 

Okay. What is your phone number? 

00:09:50 Heather Zidack 

Our phone number is going to be 860-486-6271. Again, that's 860-486-6271 for the UConn Home Garden Education Office. 

00:10:06 Stephen Thal 

Okay, is there anything that's an accessible format that can help people do this? Are they still in the process of putting it together? 

00:10:17 Heather Zidack 

They're still in the process of putting a lot of it together. A lot of UConn's materials, especially in our website, have been updated to be ADA compliant with screen readers and materials like that. So most UConn web pages will have that accessibility available to them. 

Also calling or you can come in anytime we can, you know, print off material for you as well. 

00:10:43 Stephen Thal 

Okay, great. Okay, so now where do we go? 

00:10:47 Heather Zidack 

So a couple more resources that we have. 

One of the things that I did want to mention is the idea of AI, because this is becoming a huge thing. You're hearing about it everywhere. And there is a lot of AI-generated gardening info out there. 

00:11:03 Heather Zidack 

What AI will do to find that information very similar to an advanced Google search, right They will look through whatever information is available. 

So they'll look at commercial stuff, they'll look at personal stuff, they'll look at scientific data, they'll ball it all together and give you an answer. So sometimes it doesn't know what you're exactly looking for. 

It's a good starting point, but you need a little bit more to guide it. 

00:11:27 Heather Zidack 

So if you are going to use AI, even like AI Gemini, Google searches, things like that. Always tell it what information you're looking for and where you're trying to find it from. 

So for an example, I'm looking for how to take care of my lilies from extension sources only. That way it tells it to look through extension EDUs to get all of the information. 

Tell it I'm looking for information on native plants from my local extension. It'll tell you native plants in the area. 

00:12:05 Heather Zidack 

So if you can guide AI in the right direction, it can be a really useful tool. But again, you need to verify that information just like you were looking on the internet. 

00:12:15 Heather Zidack 

Something else that has kind of come up is the idea of AI generated plants. 

We've seen this happen a few times in our daily questions and answers with the public, but sometimes there's pictures out there now of these AI-generated plants that look beautiful and they don't exist. It can lead to heartbreak when you're trying to shop. 

00:12:39 Heather Zidack 

Any signs that it could be artificial would include if there's any missing or extra plant parts, if the flowers are kind of mismatched, if the colors are super brilliant or there's not a lot of uniformity. 

00:12:51 Heather Zidack 

In general, if it's too good to be true, it might be, so you want to take a look to see if you can find more information about it somewhere else. It's really important when you're shopping for your plants. 

00:13:03 Heather Zidack 

There is a Connecticut native and sustainable landscaping guide that exists that you can look up online. And that guide tells you a lot of native plants in Connecticut that are going to be helpful for you to plant. 

00:13:20 Heather Zidack 

There are resources at your local garden centers that can help you find native plants or even exotic ornamental plants, but what fits your garden and your space best. So keep that in mind when using AI. 

00:13:37 Heather Zidack 

The other thing that I wanted to mention, and we talked about this a little bit before I jumped on, was plant apps. Now you've had a little experience with those, right? 

00:13:48 Heather Zidack 

Those can be really good for starting points, especially with plant ID. They're starting to get a little bit smarter. They are being AI infused or however you want to call it. And using these plants can usually get you right in the right direction. 

00:14:06 Heather Zidack 

They often, you'll take a picture and it'll give you a list of what the plant could be. And you can narrow it down from there based on your location, based on other identified structures that maybe you can't see in the image. 

00:14:19 Heather Zidack 

For example, if a stem is like a little bit fuzzy instead of just, you know, sleek and time of year. So those can be really important tangible identifying factors. Other things like smell or overall size, texture, things like that can really help you determine if your app is giving you the right information and help you calibrate it because apps often can miss context clues that pictures might not provide. 

00:14:47 Heather Zidack 

So, for example, if you take a picture of a plant and there's no size reference on it, the app may determine that it's bigger or smaller than what it really is. There is a plant out there called giant hogweed, which there's a lot of anxiety about. And it can get up to like six to eight feet tall. It flowers later in the fall or later in the summer, sorry.  

And a plant app could pick it up. But there are a handful of lookalikes that bloom at different times of year. They bloom at different sizes. And they are just not the same. 

And then a photo may not give you that information. 

00:15:32 Heather Zidack 

So with plant apps, you always want to use them as a starting app or a starting point and work from there. 

So it'll give you a list of things that it could be and then you want to verify that it's blooming at the right time of year, it's the right size, it's in the right location to make sure that it is what you're actually being told. 

00:15:53 Heather Zidack 

They unfortunately are not nearly as developed for plant health diagnostics. So they can There are ones that claim to give you an idea of what's wrong with the plant or what it needs, if it needs nutrition, if it needs water, things like that. 

Be really cautious with these. There's just too much nuance at this point. 

00:16:13 Heather Zidack 

So just like when you get sick, not every symptom can be seen and further assessment is needed, especially with plant health. And there's a lot of lookalikes out there. 

00:16:23 Heather Zidack 

So leaf spots can be caused from bacteria, fungi, environmental conditions, all sorts of things that you need to narrow down with additional information. 

So those are better given to a plant pathologist or a plant diagnostic lab, whereas using the apps for identification is really the best use of them right now, keeping in mind that you do those few things to narrow it down. 

00:16:49 Heather Zidack 

The other really good thing the apps are kind of making their way towards is there are some that can help you with your landscaping. 

So with those, you can take a picture of your landscape and they can insert little plants to make it so that you can see what it could look like. That's another really good use of plant apps just to get that information. 

So once you get the information you need, you can start building your garden or managing your garden in a better way. 

00:17:24 Stephen Thal 

Okay. We're interviewing Heather from the UConn Plant and Science Center, but she's trying to give us a lot of good resource information as well as information for planning. 

It's not just throw a few plants in and you're off and running, I think. You have to understand the habitat of your own environment you're working in. 

00:17:50 Stephen Thal 

And she's describing some of these now in order to help. And of course, as we go on throughout the year, different things will come up depending upon the weather changes and depending upon the soil changes too. Correct. 

00:18:09 Heather Zidack 

Yes, so that's a huge thing that we're starting to see and we see first thing in the spring is that temperatures are really important and plants are very sensitive to temperatures both in the air and in the soil, like you mentioned. 

That can be an indicator of when we start putting plants out into the garden. 

00:18:31 Heather Zidack 

When plants are, we see like the soil temperature rise, that's slower to rise than the air temperature. So in early spring, when we start seeing soil temperatures around 50 degrees or so is when we start getting excited and doing things in the garden. 

That's usually when the forsythias bloom. That's a good indicator. 

And at that point we can start planting like our cold crops, our brassicas, our cool season herbs, root vegetables, things like that. They like the soil temperature at like 50, 60 degrees. 

So a lot of gardens by now already have those planted and they're doing pretty well. 

00:19:10 Heather Zidack 

Whereas you have, once we get 50 to 60 degree air temperatures at night, you start being able to bring out more of your warmer season stuff, so your annuals, your hanging baskets, your vegetables that are like peppers and tomatoes, the warm season stuff. 

All of that can start going out when we start seeing nighttime air temperatures at between 50 and 60 degrees. 

00:19:37 Heather Zidack 

The one thing that I tend to caution people about is that once we're at that temperature, it's It's not quite over yet, right? We all know New England spring, there's going to be a random frost somewhere in the equation. 

So you have to be able to cover your plants if they're planted. If we're getting a frost, a lot of plants are susceptible to damage when it's too, too cold. 

00:20:01 Heather Zidack 

So you can cover things with like You know, if you're in a pinch, use a bed sheet or a towel. You can use, you know, just breathable materials. 

You never want to use tarps or plastic. 

And if you do have the opportunity, you want to use some stakes to kind of tent it up so that there's some airflow and some warm air there keeping the plants safe. 

So that's a really good caution. 

00:20:27 Heather Zidack 

If you're out and you're shopping for garden stuff now, you're looking at perennials and shrubs, most of them should be able to go outside the day you purchase them, especially if you're in a garden center where they're storing all of their plants outside. 

Odds are that they've been hardened off and ready for the season to come. 

00:20:44 Heather Zidack 

If you're buying something that is in a greenhouse, it may not be ready and it may need to be transitioned. Best thing to do is to ask your garden center professional for clarification. 

Is this okay to go outside? Has it been growing in a greenhouse all this time? 

Those kinds of things will help you determine whether you can put it outside yet or not. 

00:21:04 Heather Zidack 

Your houseplants definitely may benefit from doing field trips in and outside for a couple of weeks before you get them fully outside. 

00:21:13 Heather Zidack 

One of the things that's really important is if they got full sun in your house, you don't want to put them out in the direct sunlight right away. 

Your window panes tend to filter a lot of light, especially the newer window panes have the UV blocking technology and stuff and they're not getting a full spectrum of light in the same way. 

So you want to put your house plants in a place that has bright indirect light first and give them a couple of weeks to transition before you put them right out in the full sun. 

Plants can actually get sunburned just like we can. So you want to make sure. 

00:21:49 Heather Zidack 

The other thing too, you know, looking at your hanging baskets and things like that, they may also benefit from those little field trips in and outside. They're really easy to move if you've got a frost coming. So that's really good to keep in mind. 

00:22:06 Heather Zidack 

So that's some shopping tips right now of like what can go outside and what can maybe hang back for a little while longer. 

00:22:15 Stephen Thal 

That's great. A lot of good information. 

And of course, plants and gardening, that's a huge field. Even if you're going to be doing smaller things inside. 

00:22:28 Stephen Thal 

Do they ever do herbs as houseplants or they have to be outside? 

00:22:35 Heather Zidack 

Herbs are great for indoors as well as outdoors. They don't get too big. They don't necessarily require as much sun as some plants. 

00:22:48 Heather Zidack 

In general, when we're looking at plants, the more showy their flowers, the more light they tend to need. 

Now there's exceptions to every rule, but a lot of plants, especially our herbs, our vegetables, the more that they produce fruit and flower, the more sunlight they need. 

00:23:07 Heather Zidack 

The great thing with things like herbs like basil and parsley, they do produce flowers, but that's not ever what we're looking for from them. 

So by keeping them on a windowsill, they will get enough sunlight to produce the leaves. That's what we're looking for for culinary purposes. And so those can be a really good thing. 

00:23:26 Heather Zidack 

They can also be great if you're just getting into gardening. They seed really quickly, they don't take up a lot of space, and it's a really good chance to learn on something that's kind of easy. 

00:23:39 Stephen Thal 

That's good. Any other interesting things we need to look at for this year? 

00:23:45 Heather Zidack 

Yeah. Well, for this spring, looking ahead, couple of cautions that I have for people is to avoid pruning anything that blooms in the spring just yet. 

We do have phone calls occasionally at this time of year where people are asking if they can prune their lilacs, their hydrangeas, their azaleas, rhododendrons, things like that. 

And right now we recommend that you wait. 

00:24:13 Heather Zidack 

If you prune too early on a lot of these plants, you could lose their flowers for the season. They actually do set their buds in the fall. So those flower buds are already there and if you cut them back, you could be removing flowers. 

So even those hydrangea sticks look really ugly, give them a little more time. They could have flower buds on them and you wouldn't want to miss them this year. 

00:24:38 Heather Zidack 

Another thing is that it's a great time to divide and transplant your fall and summer blooming perennials. 

Leave your spring blooming stuff because it's in the middle of having its show for the season, but you can move some of those other things still in May. 

00:24:57 Heather Zidack 

Another tip that I give a lot of people is as you're planting, especially vegetable gardens, if you have issues with insects and pests, put netting as you're planting to help. It takes another thing off the list. You don't have to go back and do it later. 

00:25:14 Heather Zidack 

If you do your netting, when you do your planting, it'll help keep those pests away for longer. but depending on what you're planting, you may need to remove those so that pollinators can get in. So always make sure that that's in line and then 

00:25:30 Heather Zidack 

The biggest reminder is to remember to water because as we've seen with different springs, sometimes we get trained if we have a really rainy spring to not get in the habit of watering. 

So even if you don't have to water because there's rain, it's really good to check the soil and make sure that you do or do not need to water. 

00:25:51 Heather Zidack 

So what you can do to do that is you wanna dig up a little bit, take a little handful of soil, squeeze it in your hand. 

If you open your hand and that soil holds shape, then it's probably good on water for a little while longer. 

If you open your hand and it turns to dust or falls apart, is really crumbly, that may need water to supplement. 

And if you squeeze your hand and you have water running out of your hand, you're definitely overwatered and you need to wait until your next watering. 

00:26:20 Heather Zidack 

This can be effective for your house plants as well as your plants in the ground because you can kind of get a gauge of what the soil feels like to help you decide if you need water. 

00:26:31 Stephen Thal 

Boy, a lot of information coming up, especially when people have big gardens they have to manage. What kind of protective gear should people be wearing as they're gardening? Many people forget that's part of the whole process. 

00:26:45 Heather Zidack 

Yeah, it's really important to make sure that you're protecting yourself when you're outside. 

One of the big things that I recommend is make sure you're wearing long pants and long sleeves, just like a lighter material if you can. By doing that, you're going to keep anything from brushing against your skin that might cause an irritation. 

00:27:05 Heather Zidack 

So some people are very sensitive to different plants and it may be that they need a little bit more protection. 

00:27:13 Heather Zidack 

So especially if you're handling a plant that you don't know what it is, long pants, long sleeves, gloves, and closed-toed shoes are a must. 

So those big thickets that you're trying to weed out for the season, make sure that you're fully covered and that your skin is covered because you don't know what's in there necessarily. 

And if you've ever gotten poison ivy, you know that you don't want to get that if you're in a dense kind of thicket area. 

00:27:40 Heather Zidack 

Other important thing, it's really important to wear a hat when you're out in the sun. 

Sunscreen as well to make sure that you are protected from the UV as well as sunglasses can be really important. 

00:27:53 Heather Zidack 

We've seen people though will garden in flip flops and shorts and they can do that too. 

But if you are working in, like I said, especially in an area of your property where you don't know what's growing there, the more covered you can be, the better. 

00:28:09 Stephen Thal 

And also to stay hydrated. 

00:28:11 Heather Zidack 

Yes, super important, especially when we get into those hot days. 

When I worked at the garden center, I used to tell people to water the plants and water yourself. 

00:28:23 Stephen Thal 

Why don't you repeat the numbers one more time? People can call for help. Now, is there a charge for this? 

00:28:30 Heather Zidack 

No, this is a free service. So emails and phone calls to our office are free. 

00:28:37 Heather Zidack 

Our plant diagnostic lab and soil lab have their own payment structures and things, which you'd have to contact them for more information. 

But you can always call us first and we can point you in the right direction if you have any questions. 

00:28:51 Heather Zidack 

So it's just one number to write down for now, and that would be 860-486-6271. Again, that's 860-486-6271. 

00:29:05 Stephen Thal 

Okay, well, we want to wish you success in your move as well as enjoying a new place that makes you give you a breath of fresh air. 

00:29:16 Stephen Thal 

Thank your entire staff for helping with the move as well as others, and thank you for coming on and sharing a few moments of helping us to prepare and plan for this coming spring year, and we hope to get you back in, I guess, the fall. 

00:29:35 Heather Zidack 

Sure thing. Thanks for having me. 

00:29:37 Stephen Thal 

Yep. Take good care. 

00:29:38 Stephen Thal 

This is Steven Thalwith another segment on Focal Point. Thank you for allowing us into your homes. 

00:29:44 Stephen Thal 

We want to thank Heather and her staff for all they do to get this information together and collect it so that we all can benefit from many aspects of their situation. 

00:29:57 Stephen Thal 

Now, phone numbers have been given and we hope you're able to follow up and learn like all of us do. 

00:30:05 Stephen Thal 

In closing, we want to remind everybody to please wear a hat and sunglasses to protect yourself. 

As Heather said, in the garden and everything, you got to wear long pants and long sleeve shirts and do the work mostly in the morning, right? It's the coolest. 

00:30:23 Stephen Thal 

We like to also remind you about emergency planning, especially in your home. or when you're volunteer working, learn about what the emergency plans are and get everybody involved in your family and also practice them. That's the key thing. 

If you need additional resources, contact your local fire and/or police department and they can guide you as to where you can get the best help. 

00:30:52 Stephen Thal 

Again, have a safe summer and be safe, especially against the sun and other things in the garden that may be of hazard. 

Thank you all for listening and have a great great summer. 

 

Chaos Gardening

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By. Dr. Lauren Kurtz, UConn Home Garden Education Office 

Sunlit meadow filled with tall green grasses and scattered wildflowers, including small pink, yellow, and white blooms, with dense shrubs and trees in the background.
Photo by Lauren Kurtz, UConn Home Garden Education Office

Chaos gardening is a growing social media trend that encourages gardeners to relinquish control, scatter assorted seeds, step back, and see what happens. Instead of carefully spacing plants and planning layouts, chaos gardeners toss seeds and let nature decide what grows where. The results can vary widely, ranging from a surprising assortment of plants to a patch of disappointment. 

Unlike traditional gardening, this approach emphasizes spontaneity over structure. For many, the appeal lies in its simplicity. Chaos gardening is easy to start, requires minimal knowledge, and often relies on leftover or inexpensive seed packets. The low-stakes, experimental nature makes it especially attractive to busy people or those new to gardening. 

Still, the trend raises valid questions. Without site preparation or ongoing care, how well can seeds establish? And does “letting go” invite weeds into the garden under the guise of wildscaping? 

In practice, chaos gardening often produces mixed results. While the concept is appealingly simple, success rates can be low, and plantings may struggle to persist long term. Still, gardeners interested in the trend can improve their chances of success by following a few simple suggestions. 

Avoid using this approach in large or prominent spaces. Start small, either in a container or a less visible area of the yard. To maintain a sense of experimentation, while increasing success, consider focusing on a single species at a time or scattering spring bulbs through an existing lawn. Tossing out a packet of “wildflower” seeds may sound charming, but it will not produce an instant, picture-perfect meadow. More often, it results in a steadfast patch of mugwort.  

Even with a relaxed approach, a bit of planning goes a long way. Key factors such as sunlight and soil conditions still matter. The principle of “right plant, right place” applies regardless of gardening style. Identifying site conditions, selecting appropriate species, and preparing the planting bed can significantly improve outcomes. 

Gardeners should also approach seed mixes labeled “wildflower,” “pollinator-friendly,” or “native” with some caution. While not inherently problematic, these mixes can contain species that are poorly suited to local conditions. A quick review of the species on the list can help inform decisions about whether the plants are suited to the region or growing conditions. 

Learning how to recognize seedlings, including common weeds and invasive plants, is another important step. Early identification allows gardeners to remove undesirable species before they establish. Observing which plants succeed can also guide future efforts, gradually transforming a disorderly patch into a more reliable and productive space. 

Patience is essential. Many perennials grown from seed take more than one season to flower. Including a mix of annuals and perennials can help maintain visual interest while longer-lived plants establish. As with any gardening method, some trial and error is expected. 

Chaos gardening may never replace traditional approaches, but it offers an accessible entry point for beginners and a creative outlet for experienced growers. With a balance of spontaneity and informed decision-making, even an unstructured planting can become a living experiment. 

The UConn Home Garden Education Office supports UConn Extension’s mission by providing answers you can trust with research-based information and resources. For gardening questions, contact us toll-free at (877) 486-6271, visit our website at homegarden.cahnr.uconn.edu, or reach out to your local UConn Extension Center at  extension.uconn.edu/locations.  

This article was published in the Hartford Courant May 24, 2026

Watch for these Temperatures this Spring

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By Heather Zidack, UConn Home Garden Education Office 

Emerging daffodil shoots growing at the base of a stone wall amid fallen leaves.
Photo by H. Zidack, UConn Home Garden Education Office

With a taste of spring earlier in the week, gardeners are itching to get back out there for a little bit of sunshine and horticultural therapy. Don’t let the forecast fool you, we still have a stretch of time before we can really do many of the gardening activities we love.  

Interestingly, there is a magic number for gardeners to watch out for. 50°F is a significant temperature for when we, as gardeners, can start to act. However, this temperature, in various applications, needs to be monitored to ensure we’re doing the right activities at the right time.  

The first thing we will look for in the spring is air temperature above 50°F during the day. Unfortunately, the couple of days we had last week weren’t enough to really set off the start whistles for us. Consistency is key. When we hit this consistent daytime temperature, we start to see more obvious signs of seasonal changes. With a sustained air temperature above 50°F during the day, we can start to do things like clean out our gardens. Many species of pollinators and beneficial insects will start to become active at these temperatures. While a more accurate tool, known as Growing Degree Days (GDD) can help you identify the specific needs of specific species of both plant and insect development, this rule of thumb gives us a guideline to start with. Remove thick, dense piles of wet and matted leaves, or consider gently fluffing them up with a rake. A one-to-two-inch layer can benefit our plants as a natural mulch, but dense piles should be relocated to compost or the edge of the wood line. If you encourage pollinator habitat, avoid shredding or mulching leaf material as an extra protective measure for any stragglers that may be slow to wake up.  

Soil warms much slower than the ambient air temperature, so while it may feel comfortable to work outside, the soil may not be primed for activity. We commonly encourage gardeners to monitor for a soil temperature consistently above 50°F as another milestone.  This guideline is found to be the baseline for germination rates of many warm-season plants, and sustained temperatures above this threshold are necessary to promote growth. Cool season annuals and perennials will have different soil temperature thresholds for germination and success. In addition, this is an ideal temperature range for many garden products like fertilizers and pre-emergent herbicides to be effective. As always, check the product label for specifics on temperature ranges, as different products and different species of plants all have different needs. While we get a daily forecast almost anywhere for air temperatures, soil can be a bit more challenging to track. Use tools like Cornell’s Fore Cast or similar resources to help track local soil temperatures.  

The last big milestone in the spring comes when nighttime air temperatures consistently reach 50°F or higher. At this point many of our houseplants and tender annuals, including  warm-season vegetables, can be planted in the garden or put out onto the patio without protection. This is the stage where we truly feel like spring has arrived and our gardening is in full swing.  

 When we have a typical season, these benchmarks tend to happen in order. Days get warmer, soil follows suit, and nighttime temperatures are the last to stabilize. However, occasionally, the seasons can throw us a curveball and these may not sync up exactly as planned. Always monitor them as separate markers for the best outcomes in your garden.  

By watching these temperature thresholds as the season unfolds, we give our gardens the best possible start. These guidelines are a great place to start for the beginning gardener, and tools like the soil temperature map and growing degree days are there to help the advanced gardener fine tune their practice. Whatever your skill level, we’re here to help you grow!  

The UConn Home Garden Education Office supports UConn Extension’s mission by providing answers you can trust with research-based information and resources. For gardening questions, contact us toll-free at (877) 486-6271, visit our website at homegarden.cahnr.uconn.edu, or reach out to your local UConn Extension Center at extension.uconn.edu/locations.    

This article was published in the Hartford Courant March 14, 2026

Plan Early For A Great Growing Season

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By Heather Zidack, UConn Home Garden Education Office

Seed tray with soil-filled compartments and tiny green seedlings emerging. Clear plastic lid with condensation droplets, indicating a humid environment.
Photo by Heather Zidack, UConn Home Garden Education Office

As you start to plan your next vegetable garden, you may reflect on the previous seasons to help you develop your seed selection, layout, and more.  Gardening can already be a sustainable practice, but many want to be more intentional with reducing waste, improving efficiency, and promoting sustainability in their home. Your stages of garden planning should include considerations to ensure you are meeting these goals during the growing season.

The first way to improve your practices is to have an honest assessment of your strengths and weaknesses as a vegetable gardener. For example, through years of trial and error, I have finally admitted out loud that I am not skilled at keeping pepper seedlings warm enough to yield bountiful plants in the growing season. As a solution, I now buy my pepper plants from the garden center in the spring, while still using my setup to start other vegetables and flowers from seed. Using the garden center to help fill in gaps allows you to use that time, energy, and money for seed that has a track record of success. You might even have space to try something new!

Plan to save seed before your plants even start growing. Select seed varieties listed as “open pollinated” so that the offspring will come back true to seed in the following season. Plants that do not have this designation may not come back true to type and may lead to unfamiliar plants in the future!

Consider space as a commodity while you’re planning your garden. Think about the space that some plants require, and determine if that product is worth that space, time, and energy. If your row will yield half a dozen heads of cabbage from weeks of watering, weeding, and care, does that meet your gardening goal? Or do you have other goals in mind? Decisions like this early in the planning stages can help you make your garden more efficient, productive, and tailored to you.

Prevent waste by growing what you and your family will eat. Sometimes gardeners get caught up in the novelty. Purple cauliflower is exciting and worth the space if your family will eat the cauliflower. Avoid overplanting to keep your garden efficient and reduce waste. Does your family get sick of certain produce mid-season? That could be a clue that you're overplanting. When planning for the year ahead, ask yourself if your family has the capacity to eat or safely store whatever is harvested when it is ready. Plant yields are easily researched to help you determine how many plants you may need in your garden to meet your goals.

It can be difficult to consider cutting certain vegetables out of your garden for space or efficiency. However, this is where local agriculture can assist. Just like buying pepper starts from the garden center saves time and energy in the seedling space, buying local produce can help fill any gaps you may feel in your garden’s productivity.  From a sustainability standpoint, buying local usually means less energy used in transportation, refrigeration and storage when compared to produce from outside our region.

Cost Share Agriculture (CSA) programs are an effective way to supplement your garden produce. These programs often work on a shareholder system, where purchasing a membership up front will guarantee a share of the farm’s harvest throughout the season usually on a weekly or bi-weekly basis. Connecticut has CSAs for produce, cut flowers, and even meat products. Many of them start signups well before the growing season begins, so keep an eye out!  Visiting local farmers markets is another way to help supplement your garden produce, with less of a regular commitment. Some even provide forms of family entertainment, like music, during the summer.

As you plan your next garden, remember that sustainability starts with intentional choices and there is no “one size fits all” strategy. Carefully considering your strengths, weaknesses, and goals will help you promote a sustainable and efficient garden in the season to come.

The UConn Home Garden Education Office supports UConn Extension’s mission by providing answers you can trust with research-based information and resources. For gardening questions, contact us toll-free at (877) 486-6271, visit our website at homegarden.cahnr.uconn.edu, or reach out to your local UConn Extension Center at extension.uconn.edu/locations.

This article was published in the Hartford Courant January 10, 2026

Highlighting Connecticut’s Winter Cheer: Common Witch Hazel

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By Holly McNamara, UConn Plant Diagnostic Lab

Branches of witch hazel with clusters of yellow, ribbon-like flowers against a clear blue sky and autumn foliage.
Photo by Pamm Cooper, UConn Home Garden Education Office

Connecticut’s native species of Witch Hazel, Hamamelis virginiana, is a remarkably unique woody ornamental that can be found as a large shrub or small tree. It comes to the rescue this time of year as the leaves continue to drop and our surroundings become starved of color. Its foliage in autumn is a showstopping yellow.  

Hamamelis virginiana can grow between 10 and 20 feet tall and is often nearly just as wide as it is tall. In ideal conditions, some can even grow as large as 30 feet tall. It has a loose and somewhat open, irregular rounded shape and is very attractive in landscaping when used as hedge rows, woodland edge planting, or along a pond or river. It’s the last plant to come into bloom each year in the Northeast, blooming from October to December. The bloom coincides with its flashy fall foliage, making it one of the most eye-catching specimens of the winter landscape.  

The blooms are bright yellow with spidery, ribbon-like petals and have a pleasant citrusy fragrance. They are clustered tightly around the branches, and the petals curl up protectively during cold spells. A few cut branches in a vase will be sure to perfume and brighten up your home during the dreary winter months. Its late flowers attract certain species of flies, bees, gnats, and cold-tolerant moths. These insects are a food source for native songbirds such as kinglets, chickadees, and titmice.  

The medicinal qualities of the Common Witch Hazel are world renowned and have been utilized for centuries. Its anti-inflammatory properties serve as a soothing remedy for bruises, itches, sunburns, acne, and small wounds. In fact, Common Witch Hazel extract is one of the only medicinal plants approved by the FDA as a nonprescription drug. Always consult with a medical professional before incorporating the use of medicinal plants. It's worth noting that there have been several Witch Hazel processing plants in Connecticut, starting in the 19th Century. To this day, most of the world’s Witch Hazel extracts are still produced in East Hampton, Connecticut. 

Consider planting a Common Witch Hazel or two in your yard, mixed with hollies, viburnums, and dogwoods for some late-season cheer. Common Witch Hazel will grow in a variety of conditions, from moist to dry, and shaded to sunny. Flowers are most abundant when planted in full sun. It prefers acidic, nutrient-rich, well-draining soil. It’s quite hardy, growing in zones 4 through 8, and has very little trouble with pests or diseases. After establishment, they are virtually care-free. The only maintenance of note is periodic pruning to remove suckers if a controlled shape is desired. 

Although it is a slow growing plant, it is worth the wait when it bursts into bloom. With so much going for it, this is a plant that deserves greater consideration for use in ornamental landscapes and yards. 

The UConn Home & Garden Education Center supports UConn Extension’s mission by providing answers you can trust with research-based information and resources. For gardening questions, contact us toll-free at (877) 486-6271, visit our website at homegarden.cahnr.uconn.edu, or reach out to your local UConn Extension center at extension.uconn.edu/locations.

This article was published in the Hartford Courant November 29, 2025

Road Salt and Your Soil

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By Dr. Avishesh Neupane, UConn Soil Nutrient Analysis Lab

When I was a graduate student from Nepal living in New Haven from 2012 to 2014, I kept noticing the same winter aftereffect across town. Along busy streets, the first foot of lawn by the pavement turned yellow and matted, and the road-facing sides of yews and hollies burned while the yard sides looked fine. Coming from a place that does not spread salt each winter, it felt backward. We made the road safer, but the plants and soil paid the price. At UConn’s Soil Nutrient Analysis Lab, we hear versions of this every spring. People send soil from a strip along the road or from a bed near the driveway and say that spot never greens up like the rest.  

You have also likely noticed the symptoms. Fine particles form a crust on the soil surface where water evaporates. Turf browns right at the pavement edge. Buds on the roadside of a shrub fail to break. Evergreens brown on the street side when traffic spray carries salty water, while the interior needles stay green. Vegetable beds that sit too close to plow piles can exhibit poor emergence, tip burn, or slow growth, even when the rest of the garden appears fine.  

What road salt does to soil 

Sodium chloride (rock salt) is the most widely used deicer. Once it dissolves, it separates into sodium (Na⁺) and chloride (Cl⁻). Chloride is highly mobile. It moves with meltwater, so in a wet spring, it can leach through the soil and, where conditions allow, reach groundwater, affecting well water quality. 

Sodium changes how soil behaves. In healthy soil, calcium and magnesium sit on exchange sites; repeated sodium inputs displace them, sealing the surface, reducing infiltration, and making the soil feel tighter right where plants already struggle. Sodium also competes with potassium uptake, so salt-burned spots can look nutrient-deficient even when tests show adequate levels. 

Alternatives to sodium chloride are often less harsh but cost more. Magnesium chloride and calcium chloride melt at lower temperatures but still add chloride and can injure plants and corrode concrete and metal. Calcium magnesium acetate (CMA) is chloride-free and generally gentler, yet it’s pricier and harder to find. 

Lab testing and management options 

If you inform the lab that the sample is from a salt-affected area (such as a roadside, plow pile, or splash zone), they will interpret the numbers with that history in mind and, if necessary, use the appropriate salinity method for your sample. 

  1. Soil pH and texture (and organic matter). Sandy roadside fill flushes salts quickly but is more susceptible to damage due to its low buffering capacity. Heavier soils with more organic matter hold up better but can crust at the surface after repeated salting. For optimal plant health and reduced salt uptake, aim for a pH of approximately 6.5–7.0; your report will include a lime rate if your pH is below this range.
  2. Soluble salts / electrical conductivity (EC). EC shows how salty the root zone was when you sampled. It is most informative right after winter or snowmelt, when salts are near the surface. For mineral soils, labs typically measure EC from a simple soil–water extract. 

    Dense green shrub with numerous small, bright red berries growing along its branches, situated against a brick and white wall in a landscaped area.
    Plants like the Winterberry Holly (Ilex verticillata) may be able to stand up to some salt exposure in the landscape. Some varieties may be more resistant than others. (Photo by H. Zidack)

    Start with prevention. Before winter, top-dress the first 1–2 feet along the road with a thin layer of compost to improve structure and exchange capacity. Keep that strip covered, overseed thin turf, or use a salt-tolerant edge, and ask the plow operator to place piles where meltwater drains to the street or to vegetation that isn’t over your well line. Where meltwater goes matters as much as how much salt you use. 

    After winter, fix what the season left behind. If the roadside sample shows elevated EC, lightly loosen any compacted or crusted soil so that water can infiltrate. Then, leach the area with two or three deep soakings a few days apart to push salts below the main root zone. If a hedge or shrub burns on the roadside year after year, consider moving it back or replacing the front row with more salt-tolerant plants. 

    For chronic hotspots, shift from one-time flushing to long-term protection: use less deicer, keep piles away from beds and wells, maintain dense groundcover in the first foot along pavement, and in harsh exposures, consider stone mulch plus seasonal compost topdressing to help the soil rebound. 

    If your well water tastes salty, check the state’s road-salt guidance and contact your town. When the damage is limited to curb strips or driveway beds, soil testing and better winter practices usually solve it.  

    The UConn Home & Garden Education Center supports UConn Extension’s mission by providing answers you can trust with research-based information and resources. For gardening questions, contact us toll-free at (877) 486-6271, visit our website at homegarden.cahnr.uconn.edu, or reach out to your local UConn Extension center at extension.uconn.edu/locations. 

    This article was published in the Hartford Courant November 23, 2025

    Don’t Let Dry Soil Follow Your Plants Into Winter!

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    By Holly McNamara, UConn Plant Diagnostic Lab

    This year, Connecticut’s notably dry summer conditions have continued into fall. According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, all counties are abnormally dry for this time of year, and some are even considered to be in a moderate drought. Thus, many trees, shrubs, and perennials are heading into winter low on moisture. These conditions combined with the dry air, low precipitation, and fluctuating temperatures characteristic of Connecticut winters can lead to plant damage if no supplemental water is provided. Many of your plants will benefit from a deep final soak before the ground freezes.

    Fall drought stress often doesn’t show up until spring, or even the following summer.Affected plants may appear perfectly normal and resume growth in the spring, using stored food energy. Plants may be weakened or die in late spring or summer when temperatures rise. Browning evergreens, delayed leaf-out, and sudden dieback are common signs of plants that went into winter too dry.

    Moist soil is so important in the fall and winter months because it provides insulation to the roots. It may seem counter-intuitive, but properly hydrated soil does a much better job at protecting roots from freezing temperatures than dry soil. Root damage occurs for this reason when plants do not receive enough late-season moisture.

    Woody plants with shallow root systems require the most supplemental water during extended dry periods in the fall and winter. Trees in this category include maples, birches, willows, and dogwoods. This category also includes perennials, and shrubs like hydrangeas, boxwoods, and azaleas. These plants benefit from mulch to further conserve soil moisture and buffer the roots from temperature swings. Apply mulch about 2 to 4 inches away from the trunk all the way to the outermost reach of its branches in a doughnut shape.

    Evergreen needles up close
    Evergreens need sufficient water in dry falls to help prevent winter injury. Photo by Heather Zidack

    Evergreens also benefit from fall and winter watering because they do not go dormant in the winter. Evergreens of any age are still actively respiring during the coldest months of the year and will continuously lose water through their needles. If they go into the winter with dry soil, they are more likely to have a difficult spring recovery. This is especially true for those in open or windy areas.

    Only water when daytime temperatures are above 40°F, ideally in the late morning or early afternoon so the water can soak in before possible freezing at night. Feel the soil at a depth of 4 to 6 inches to ensure that supplemental water is necessary. Soil should be consistently moist, but not oversaturated or muddy. Stop supplemental watering after the ground freezes because plants cannot absorb water through frozen soil. To water, use a soaker hose to provide a slow stream of water that can penetrate deeper into the soil with limited runoff. If your hose is already stored away for the winter, and your tree or shrub is small, consider drilling a 1/8-inch hole at the bottom of a 5-gallon bucket and filling that with water for a slow, steady stream. If dry weather continues into the winter and there’s little snow cover, additional watering once or twice a month may be needed until the soil hardens.

    A final round of watering now can prevent root injury that won’t be visible until much later. Evergreens, deciduous trees, and other landscape plantings will head into winter stronger with a little extra attention this month. Giving the soil one last watering before it freezes is one of the simplest ways to protect your landscape from winter stress.

    The UConn Home & Garden Education Center supports UConn Extension’s mission by providing answers you can trust with research-based information and resources. For gardening questions, contact us toll-free at (877) 486-6271, visit our website at homegarden.cahnr.uconn.edu, or reach out to your local UConn Extension center at extension.uconn.edu/locations.

    This article was published in the Hartford Courant October 25, 2025

    We Asked Gardening Pros If You Should Rake Leaves From Garden Beds—And They All Agreed

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    We Asked Gardening Pros If You Should Rake Leaves From Garden Beds—And They All Agreed

    The Spruce – Heather Zidack and other professionals give their insight on raking leaves from your garden beds.