How to cover rosemary for the winter at the dacha: care in the open ground, is it necessary to dig it up?

How does rosemary overwinter?

During the growing season of an evergreen subshrub, air temperature plays a critical role. Even minor frosts can cause irreparable harm to a heat-loving crop. Above-zero temperatures are an important condition for survival.

Also, in order for the plant to feel comfortable, you will need:

a lighted area, protected from the wind, with loose soil that is not oversaturated with moisture;
soil - must be neutral or slightly alkaline;
Regular but moderate watering is required.

In many regions, the winter months are accompanied by prolonged frosts. If you leave a wintering shrub in the open ground, it will die, since rosemary is not a frost-resistant species. You will need to arm yourself with knowledge and make some efforts to help him spend the winter calmly.

While the plant is young and small in size, it is easy to move it to the autumn-winter period. It is difficult to do this with older specimens. The list of activities for successful wintering must be carried out when the average daily temperature is 8-10 degrees above zero.

Use in cooking and medicine

The flavor palette of rosemary includes lemon, ether, pine and camphor.

Eating products that were prepared with the participation of a perennial is extremely beneficial for health, because rosemary can:

strengthen memory;
stimulate the circulatory system;
calm a person down;
tone the entire body.

The main sources of benefits are camphor, resins and essential oils.

Rosemary is also capable of providing other positive effects with the help of its unique chemical composition:

expectorant;
diuretic;
anti-inflammatory;
antispasmodic.

That is why now, as in the past, infusions, decoctions and teas made from rosemary leaves and other parts of this medicinal plant are extremely popular.

Which varieties tolerate wintering easier?

There are five types of rosemary. But among gardeners and vegetable gardeners, only two are widely used:

Spread rosemary. Due to its peculiarities, it is used for decorating fences, hedges, and alpine slides. The fragrant hedges are strewn with small blue flowers. The most popular varieties: Lavender, Creeping. They grow well in width, height - no more than 50 centimeters. The bright rich aroma repels pests.
Medicinal rosemary (Common). Suitable for regions with temperate climates. Varieties: Dewdrop, Tenderness. They grow from one meter in height. Long narrow leaves. Flowering period - early spring. The flowers have a white, violet, lilac hue. They are often grown using pots and tubs so as not to dig them up for the winter.
The domestic variety, Veshnyakovsky semko, is also popular. Drought-resistant species, but not frost-resistant.
Foreign varieties also deserve attention: Severn sea, Prostratus. The first plant grows up to 50 centimeters in height, the second - up to 15 centimeters, has creeping shoots.

These varieties are suitable for the middle zone, but still require preparatory work for covering or transferring with the onset of cold weather. Can withstand short-term frosts, down to 5 degrees below zero.

Description of the plant

The Yasnotkov family includes a large number of varieties of herbs, among them rosemary. This perennial evergreen shrub is native to the Mediterranean. Even today, in countries such as Greece, Spain, Portugal, and Cyprus, shrubs growing naturally can be found in the mountains and dry valleys. In our country, the distribution area of wild rosemary covers the Crimea and the North Caucasus.

The first mentions of the plant were found in manuscripts of Ancient Greece, Egypt, and Rome. People considered the flower magical and used it in rituals of expelling evil spirits and healing seriously ill people. The Egyptians believed that it would help the soul of the deceased to overcome the path to the other world and placed bouquets of rosemary in the hands of deceased relatives.

The plant has a very branched, powerful lignified root up to 3-4 m long, from which tetrahedral, slightly pubescent shoots extend, sometimes reaching a height of 2 m, although there are also low-growing, almost shrubby varieties. They do not stretch upward, but are pressed against the very surface of the soil. Their height is only 15 cm.

Rosmarinus is grown for its leaves, the aroma of which combines notes of pine needles, lemon, camphor, and eucalyptus. The original leaves have short petioles and look like needles with slightly curved, blunt tips.

In April-May, the first flowers appear on the bushes, and the flowering period ends in late autumn, in October-November. The structure of rosemary flowers is typical of the Lamiaceae family. Their petals are false racemes, consisting of 5-10 “flowers”, open like a pharynx. There is a legend about how rosemary flowers got their beautiful, pale blue color. According to her, the Virgin Mary rested during the journey, placing the baby Jesus under a rosemary bush, over which she threw her cloak to protect the child from the scorching sun. The white flowers instantly changed their color, becoming sky blue.

The fruits formed after flowering are small round nuts. Their full ripening occurs in the fall. The surface (shell) of the fruit is smooth, and the color is brownish-brown.

Scientists put forward two versions of why the plant has such an original name. According to one theory, it is derived from the combination of two Latin words, ros and marinus, which literally mean sea dew. Other philologists believe that the word has Greek roots: rhops and myrinos, which translates as low-growing balsam bush. But people, relying on its external data and beneficial properties, gave it other names:

wedding flower;
bridesmaid dress;
incense herb;
dike;
sea freshness;
pharmaceutical rosemary.

The genus Rosmarinus is not distinguished by its diversity of species. Scientists botanists identify only 5 subspecies, of which only one is grown in our country - medicinal rosemary, which has dark green leaves-needles and flowers from light blue to dark purple. In Russia it is represented by 3 varieties (Vishnyakovsky Semko, Nezhnost, Rosinka). There are many more varieties of rosemary in the collections of foreign gardeners. But only experienced specialists can experiment with their cultivation, since almost all of them belong to the heat-loving category and in order to grow them in the cold regions of our country you will have to make every effort. While domestic varieties are frost-resistant and unpretentious.

Preparing rosemary for winter

The rosemary bush is a very delicate plant. To prevent frostbite in winter, the crop must be prepared. There is no need to delay this, start in the spring. With proper care, it will gain strength and become stronger - freezing of the soil and cold will not lead to death. The following recommendations will help:

If you know about nearby groundwater, then the best cure will be good drainage so that the roots of the shrub do not rot, weakening the plant.
When the bush reaches three years of age, mandatory feeding will be required - 1-2 times during the growing season. Use compost or humus at the rate of 2 kilograms of substance per square meter. Then loosen the soil by 6-12 centimeters.
Do not ignore mineral fertilizers. The plant needs phosphorus, potassium, nitrogen. Apply according to instructions. This will have a beneficial effect on growth and strengthen the immune system.
During the active period, crown rejuvenation is necessary. Trim branches periodically. Use as a seasoning for preparing various dishes. Trimming will have a beneficial effect on the plant - during the growing season, the load will be less.
Vulnerable time is the first year of life; replant plants before the onset of cold weather. Use an ordinary flower pot. Comfortable temperature is 10 degrees above zero.

Should rosemary be pruned for the winter?

It is necessary to prune the bush, but only during the active period. Cutting off old, fading branches will rejuvenate the trunk and speed up the process of formation of fresh shoots. At the end of the growing season, it is highly undesirable to cut off branches. The plant will have to go through a difficult period, it needs to gain strength.

Trimming your hair can weaken your immune system and cause illness. In the spring it will be difficult to recover, there may be no active growth, and the bush will not produce abundant shoots.

Dig or cover: which method is better?

Regardless of the variety, rosemary remains an extremely heat-loving plant; it reacts poorly to serious temperature changes, and is especially sensitive to low temperatures. Therefore, without waiting for the onset of cold weather, it is necessary to protect the future harvest so as not to be left without aromatic spices.

Regions where the temperature in the winter season does not fall more than 10 degrees below zero. And winters are generally relatively warm and humid. It is possible to cover rosemary until spring. Not all bushes can be dug up - it is better to cover a perennial overgrown plant.
Gardeners use different options. The bush is bent to the ground, the trunk is fixed with wooden pins. Sometimes they build a wooden frame and cover it with sawdust, fallen leaves, and straw. If there is a forest nearby, dry pine cones will also work. The resulting “pie” is covered with film on top. Such shelter will effectively protect the plant from temperature changes and excess moisture.
Young plants, up to two years old, that have not yet grown, are best transplanted into a suitable container. In a bright, cool room they will live quietly until spring.
In regions with harsh winters, covering rosemary will not help. The soil freezes quite deeply and for a long time. The best option would be to grow shrubs in various garden containers and transfer them to garden beds in the spring and summer. In winter, return to a cool room.

To dig or cover - there is no universal solution; it all depends on individual weather and regional characteristics.

Where can you transplant rosemary for the winter?

In fact, everything is quite simple. If regional characteristics do not allow sheltering directly in the garden, so that the plant, in a dormant state, can safely overwinter after replanting, it is enough to meet a number of simple conditions:

Find a suitable, relatively warm room. It can be a veranda, an insulated balcony or a loggia. There must be good access to daylight; if the plant withers, choose another place. The temperature should not fall below five degrees above zero. Average daily temperature: 8-12 degrees.
It is advisable to prepare a suitable container with loose nutrient soil. The soil needs to be limed; correct soil acidity is very important. Water moderately to make the bush stronger.

Types of reproduction

Shrub propagation methods:

The most common method is the first one listed. Rosemary seeds are pre-soaked and planted shallowly in moderately moist soil.

The distance between future bushes depends on the volume expected by the gardener; on average, this is a 10-centimeter distance. The seeds are ready to grow under temperature conditions ranging from +12-22°C. A particularly fertile soil for such sowing is a mixture of gravel and peat (equal proportions).

To propagate the plant by cuttings, you need to separate fresh shoots at the end of June (length - about 8 centimeters; the presence of at least three internodes).

Next, you should place them among the prepared soil at a depth of 6 centimeters; the distance between them should exceed 10 cm, and the desired landing angle should be about 45°. Young shoots tend to quickly grow a root system, so this method is especially effective.

Caring for rosemary in winter

The basic rules of floriculture will allow you to keep rosemary healthy. During the winter cycle you will need:

Gentle watering. Avoid drying out the soil.
One-time fertilizing, preferably with mineral fertilizer, provided that fertilizing was not carried out during the spring-summer season. Oversaturation of the plant with fertilizers will have a detrimental effect on the condition and will not be safe to use for food purposes.
When caring for the plant, control the humidity by spraying. The norm is up to 75%. Comfortable temperature: 8-10 degrees Celsius.
A supply of fresh air is necessary, but avoid drafts.

In the garden

Bushes that are left to winter in the garden need to be looked after. Covering before the onset of cold weather will not be enough.

In order for the crop to overwinter, it is necessary to perform a number of measures:

Before carrying out covering work, you will need to loosen the soil to saturate the soil with moisture and air. This will help you survive the cold season.
In winter, during the thaw, it is advisable to open the shelter for ventilation. This will avoid fungal infections; fresh air will strengthen and improve the health of the crop and prevent rotting. If weather conditions permit, do this 2-3 times during the season.

In the open ground

When rosemary overwinters in open ground, in addition to the preparatory work of loosening it, covering it with spruce branches, sawdust or other material, it is necessary to hide the bushes under a thick snow cushion. Snow will maintain the necessary microclimate and will allow the ground and plantings not to freeze. It is necessary to ensure that the wind does not blow away the snow cap; if necessary, add more, making the snowdrift larger. The snow cap should cover the ground, with a margin of 50 centimeters to one meter.