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With
winter knocking at the
door, the woolens and heavy quilts are out to keep the chill at bay.
While mothers are busy collecting winter clothes for the children and
housewives are airing and renovating thick quilts, the keen gardeners
are worrying about the forthcoming frost which may kill newly planted
fruit trees, brown the lush green lawns and kill all the luxuriant
foliage of the exotic plants which looked so happy during the
monsoons. Resulting from the dry and cold north-westerly winds, the
occurrence of frost is particularly high when the sky is clear and
temperatures fall considerably. As the plants and earth surfaces lose
heat, cold air flows in. A state of hoar freezing, when very cold air
affects the dew already present, can do much damage to plants,
especially the exotic tender ones and those that are just starting to
grow. They are not only prone to suffer, but may even die. A cloud
cover checks radiation and the severity of frost so no wonder there is
less of it after a cloudy night. You may have seen the wise old
gardener burn cow dung cakes in the evening near his newly planted
mangoes. There is much wisdom in it as the smoke rising from the
slowly burning cow dung cakes can prevent frost damage by interposing
a ceiling between the plants and the clear sky. Even a cover of
newspapers, Hessian cloth, polythene sheeting or netting as well as
straw can save the plants in case they are spread in the evenings and
removed in the mornings to let the plants bask in sunshine. However,
it is a very time-consuming and cumbersome exercise. A better
practice, therefore, for saving tender and newly planted fruit
saplings of mango, cheeku, papaya, custard apple, kagzi lemon,
etc is to create a tent-like cover of reeds (sarkanda) or straw
thatches leaving the south eastern side open to enable the plants to
have full advantage of the winter sun. Protection from frost during
the first winter is vital. Once well established, the young trees may
not require this cover. Owing to frost and low temperatures in the
winter months, the lawn starts turning brown and patchy. One dose of
nitrogenous fertiliser namely calcium ammonium nitrate or ammonium
sulphate should be given now to keep the lawns dark and lush green.
The dose should be worked out at the rate of 400 grams per 100 square
feet area. The fertiliser should be diluted in 100 litres of water,
stirred well and sprinkled evenly. Continue to irrigate the lawn
regularly, more so on evenings when the night is going to be clear and
one can expect frost. In case there is frost visible on the lawn in
spite of the aforesaid treatment, sprinkle water in the mornings
before the sun gets warm. In the gardener’s lingo, it is known as kora
torhna. Both these operations will help keep the lawn green, even
in severe winter. Potted and other tender plants like alocacias,
alamandas, anthuriums, calatheas, colvilleas, crotons, dieffenbachias,
ixoras, mussaendas, marantas, etc are sensitive to cold and frost and
need to be protected against the inclement weather with suitable
covers. To save them from frost and cold winds, frequency of watering
should be increased on cold nights as it helps in regulating soil
temperatures. Since low temperatures hamper the growth of plants,
heavy doses of well rotted organic manure will not only give them
strength but also warmth to fight the chill. Liquid organic manure can
be made by mixing one part of cow dung to six parts of water. Some
neem cake can also be added and stirred twice a day for three or four
days. Strained through Hessian cloth and diluted to the colour of
beer, it can be applied to potted plants. Even for other plants,
organic manure like farmyard manure, wood ash, bone meal, neem and
other oil cakes provide wholesome food for the plants. Frost-touched
plants can recover if promptly syringed with cold water and kept cool
before the sun is on them and temperatures rise. Save them before
frost really bites. |
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