For a gardener, snow means significant savings on insulation materials during the cold winter. Without enough snow, plants freeze and subsequently need to be treated or replaced. In early spring, snow cover slows sap flow, and trees remain healthy during subsequent frosts. While gardeners in the Urals and Siberia may be able to slow down the growing season in the abnormally warm 2020 thanks to February snowfalls, those living in the central and southern regions will have to rely solely on themselves and learn ways to slow down sap flow.
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Those who managed to visit their garden before the snow melted rapidly due to the early warm weather were lucky. They simply need to collect the remains of the snowdrifts and spread them over problem areas—for example, around strawberries or tree trunks. To prevent melting, sprinkle the soil with sawdust, pine needles, and spruce branches. This can delay bud swelling for 8-15 days.
It's best to remove buried seedlings first, pack them in a box or wrap them in agrofibre, and then cover them with snow. Otherwise, they'll freeze into the ice the next time it warms up. Waiting for them to thaw on their own won't do—they'll rot. Removing them will require using a crowbar, which can easily damage the fragile petioles.
Trimming
Winters are getting warmer every year. But recurrent frosts occur with the same regularity as in colder seasons. Southern fruit trees—plums, peaches, and apricots—are particularly vulnerable. Early pruning is necessary to delay bud break. Dry branches are usually removed when sap flow has slowed, in preparation for winter. To slow the formation of fruit buds, trees are pruned after harvest. Apricots are pruned first in midsummer, and then, if necessary, again in August. Cherries and plums are pruned immediately after harvest.
Garden cleaning
If trees were covered with agrofibre, straw shields, or supported with agrofibre, roofing felt, or roofing felt, you should return to the garden after the first warm day. All insulation should be removed early. The temperature under it is even higher than outdoors, and moisture accumulates. This can trigger the development of fungal infections. When forecasters predict another cold snap, the covering should be replaced.
Moisture charging
Heavy watering, coinciding with snowmelt, will slow bud swelling. In early spring, apply enough water to problem areas to saturate the soil to a depth of 30-40 cm. To prevent evaporation and runoff, dig furrows between rows in the vegetable garden and around the trunks in the orchard. This method is not suitable if the groundwater table is high, the soil is too heavy, or drainage is inadequate. If early warming is accompanied by heavy rainfall, root rot is highly likely.
Blue spray
This is the name for treating trees with a solution of copper sulfate and slaked lime. After this treatment, the garden remains blue until the first spring rain. To treat the trees from trunk to branch tips, prepare two containers. In the first, dissolve 1 kg of freshly slaked lime in 10 liters of water. In the second, add 1 kg of copper sulfate or 3-5% Bordeaux mixture to a small amount of boiling water, topping up to 10 liters with water. Then mix the solutions from both containers in equal quantities, scooping them out little by little. The average consumption is 6-7 liters for an old tree, and 3-5 for a young one.
Sometimes a different ratio is recommended: 400 g of copper sulfate for every 300 g of copper sulfate. The application rate per tree is independent of the ratio of ingredients. This method protects not only against early bud swelling but also against diseases. As the liquid flows onto the plantings, it falls on young shoots, creating unfavorable conditions for the development of pathogenic fungi, particularly scab. A second treatment, this time for plant protection, can be carried out in early June. However, in this case, the Bordeaux mixture concentration should be reduced to 1%. When working with copper sulfate, ensure your own safety. Protect your eyes with goggles, your hands with gloves, and your respiratory tract with a mask or respirator. It is advisable to wear protective clothing. It will be virtually impossible to wash off the mixture from ordinary clothing.
If these methods fail, the plant needs to be provided with conditions that will allow it to recover quickly even if damaged by cold weather. Given the experience of unusually harsh winters, it's best to consider regenerating trees in the fall. To achieve this, add superphosphate and potassium sulfate during tillage. Nitrogen fertilizers should be avoided, as they stimulate growth and vegetation. Early budding and subsequent frosts can destroy the garden.