• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary navigation
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Carol J. Michel

Award winner author of gardening humor books

  • About
    • Contact
  • Blog
  • Books
    • Shop
    • Gardening Humor
    • Children’s Books
    • New – The Halloween Hare
  • Speaking
    • Upcoming Speaking Engagements
  • Social
    • YouTube
    • Instagram
  • Gardening Humor
  • Children’s
  • All Books

May Dreams Gardens

Jack Frost Is A Demanding Task Master

November 1, 2009 By Carol Michel 14 Comments

We get an extra hour today!

How are you going to spend it? Who is going to decide how you spend?

Unfortunately, like it or not, how we spend an hour is often decided by others around us, by forces and fates that are not ours to control.

Today, a force referred to as “Jack Frost” has decreed that the extra hour gained today by turning back the clock an hour will be spent in the garden preparing for the annual visit of “Old Man Winter”.

Jack Frost is a demanding task master and insists that as soon as that block of ice melts in the birdbath, I need to clean that up and stow it and most everything else on the patio under a big brown tarp. Out in front, I need to gather up the containers on the front porch, clean them out a bit, and move them to the garage for safe keeping.

Jack has created a sense of urgency to do it sooner rather than later. He always does.

You see, once Jack has paid a few visits to the garden, Old Man Winter isn’t too far behind. And Old Man Winter doesn’t like for things to be left outside! He kicks them and breaks them with his freezing and thawing. He covers them with snow, pelts them with sleet and occasionally adds a coating of ice for good measure. He can throw an awful tantrum if he sees something left out in the garden that should be put away for the winter.

And he is particularly unkind when it comes to containers.

The big question for gardeners is whether to store containers over the winter with the soil still in them and use that soil again next spring, or dump all the dirt out, scrub the pot clean and add all new soil in the spring.

There is of course, conflicting advice on that subject.

Many sources insist that pots should be clean and the soil mix fresh to ensure that your plants get the best start possible in containers in the spring. They make it seem as though plants will simply not thrive in your dirty old pots with that tired soil from last season!

But many gardeners, like me, know that some of those containers are big and heavy, even without the dirt, and to remove all that dirt every year just seems like a lot of work and a waste of money. Our dirty little secret is that we often leave most of the dirt it our pots from year to year. We don’t even scrub the containers out between uses.

And I think it is fine that we do that.

Really, let’s just think this whole “clean pot, sterile soil” idea through a bit. Do you think for one minute that plants that are planted out in the actual garden have a “clean pot and sterile soil”?

They do not!

Cast aside that whole “clean pot, sterile soil” idea! What I generally do is pull the plants out of the conainers in the fall and scoop out some of the top layer of dirt and throw all that in the compost bins. Then in the spring, I sift through the dirt in the pot and pull out any roots or plant debris I might have left, maybe even scoop some more of it out if it looks kind of gray and tired, then mix in some new dirt (container planting mix) and plant.

Time and again, season after season, I’ve done this and I have yet to see any terrible disease on a plant in one of my containers. And yes, of course, if a plant had a bunch of disease, I would completely empty the pot it was in and rinse it out. But I don’t ever recall a container plant becoming diseased in my garden. Occasionally a plant doesn’t do well in a container, but that isn’t usually because it was sulking about the dirty pot and “used” soil.

I hope this was helpful. I hope I’ve freed you from the tyranny of the clean pot.

I hope you’ll understand that there is more I could write on this, but, I’ve got to hurry now, Jack Frost is nipping at my nose!

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: fall

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Unknown says

    November 1, 2009 at 1:50 pm

    Nice post, Carol. You have such an unique way of looking at things, such as Jack Frost and Old Man Winter as the men in our gardening lives. Thanks, too, for granting permission to keep the soil in pots and sharing the tip of inverting nursery pots to take up volume and reduce the need for potting mix.

    Reply
  2. Jill-O says

    November 1, 2009 at 4:28 pm

    Amen! I'm with you on reusing potting soil.

    Reply
  3. Claire, Plantpassion says

    November 1, 2009 at 4:54 pm

    yep I just scrape off the top layer of soil, and top dress as well, – i'm lucky in that old man winter won't be here in Surrey UK for a while, – but this is a great reminder of what I have to do before then, – thanks

    Reply
  4. Jan says

    November 1, 2009 at 7:28 pm

    The trouble with Jack Frost is that he doesn't give much notice, if any. Very rude… you'd think he'd make an appointment! Agree about the pots, it's such a waste to chuck it all out and start again.

    Reply
  5. Emilie says

    November 1, 2009 at 7:59 pm

    Agree about the pots I do the same as you. Jack Frost does paint a pretty picture.

    Reply
  6. CommonWeeder says

    November 1, 2009 at 9:28 pm

    I'm freed! This will save a little money too. I used my extra hour to go out and continue the fall clean up. I dug out a HUGE siberian iris clumb, and threw it by the side of the road where earlier 'discarded' clumps are doing very well indeed. I don't think you can kill Siberians.

    Reply
  7. Vickie says

    November 1, 2009 at 10:44 pm

    We've already had our first snow, 18 inches, a few days ago. So Jack Frost whacked us upside the head. I leave my containers up front as some have bulbs. I clean out the non-bulbed ones and the dirt goes in the veggie garden before we till in the spring.
    I am glad I am in good company.

    Reply
  8. MLight says

    November 2, 2009 at 4:09 am

    I have happy pots of salvias and cleomes from the previous year's seeds. This wouldn't happen if I cleaned out the pots every year. Occasionally, I even have a bit of an annual that nobody pulled out which survives in the pot in the crawl space.

    Reply
  9. Darla says

    November 2, 2009 at 11:48 am

    Jack Frost has not made his way down south yet…I have always found it funny that people scrub their containers only to 'dirt'y them again!! I have plants that return in the same containers…and you would never see me through perfectly good dirt away!

    Reply
  10. Marie says

    November 2, 2009 at 11:55 am

    Thanks for the freedom. Clean pots are something I think about but never get around to doing.

    I dump the pots every year on my dirt pile in order to stack them in the garage. I mix dirt from the pile with new potting soil and perlite in spring and reuse it. I use soda or beer cans in the bottom of my pots to take up space. I have never had a problem.

    Reply
  11. Lisa at Greenbow says

    November 2, 2009 at 12:31 pm

    I am in agreement with you on this one Carol. Some of those big pots just don't need the under layer removed. It doesn't see the light of day or network of roots. Why toss it I say.?.

    Reply
  12. Rose says

    November 2, 2009 at 3:56 pm

    I spent my "extra hour" yesterday catching up on blog reading, including watching the rest of the "Night Gallery" episode–couldn't wait to see what revenge the garden had for Mr. Saunders:)

    I am in complete agreement with you on containers, Carol, and glad to know you follow the same steps I do. I have some rather large containers and it seems such a waste to throw out all that dirt every year. Adding about 1/3 of new soil each spring has worked well for me, too. Often, I don't even touch them in the fall–those dead plants add a little "winter interest":)

    Reply
  13. Mary Delle LeBeau says

    November 3, 2009 at 2:03 am

    Yes, indeed, a clean pot is never that necessary. You know that they make brushes just for cleaning pots. Such useless things, I've always thought.

    Reply
  14. EAL says

    November 4, 2009 at 3:41 am

    As I think you know, I am totally with you on the reuse of big pots with dirt from last years plantings, unless the plants in question became so rootbound, they've used it all up. That happens a lot, unfortunately.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Updates from Carol Michel

* indicates required
Email Preferences

Categories

  • Blog (3,048)
  • Internal (2)

Blog Tags

annuals Blogging books bulbs dr. hortfreud embrace fairies fall family flowers fruits garden bloggers bloom day garden bloggers book club garden design gardeners gardening gardening geek gardens hoes holidays hortense hoelove houseplants humor indoor gardening insects lawn letters to gardening friends perennials rabbits reviews Secrets seeds shrubs spring tools trees vegetable garden vegetable gardening vegetables weather weeding weeds when a gardener wildflower wednesday winter

The Gardenangelists Podcast with Dee Nash

Gardenangelists Podcast

Footer

Gardenangelists Podcast with Dee Nash

Gardenangelists Podcast

Connect

  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • maydreams icon

Quick Links

  • Home
  • Contact
  • Books
  • May Dreams Gardens
  • Podcast

Updates from Carol Michel

* indicates required
Email Preferences

Newsletter Archive

Copyright © 2023 · CarolJMichel.com · Sitemap · Privacy Policy

Book purchase links are affiliate links and Carol earns a small commission if you make a purchase.

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Do not sell my personal information.
Cookie SettingsAccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT