Don’t neglect gardening during busy holidays

December is exciting for gardeners. Yes, many of us become caught up in holiday activities and it seems to squeeze gardening out of our minds, but there are things that need attention. Since Christmas trees are on our minds, here is how to keep them safe and also other things to do:

Living trees: If you are thinking of buying a living tree, be aware that a week of warmth in your home will cause the tree to come out of dormancy. So place it on a cool, shady porch until you take it in your home. Mondel and Aleppo pines make fine Christmas trees and will make a good addition to your landscape. Or, consider giving it to a school or park.

Cut trees: Shop early for a fresh tree. It's fresh if needles remain firmly attached to the branch when bending them. At home, remove one-inch of the trunk base -- some nurseries do this as you leave the store. Place the trunk in a bucket of water and store it in a cool location until ready to move it inside. Once again, put the tree in a stand of water or it will become a fire hazard if it dries out.

Recycle your Christmas tree: Do your part to help the environment by recycling your Christmas tree. The project begins Dec. 26 and continues through Jan. 15. There will be more about this later. Pete Duncombe, curator of the Gardens at the Springs Preserve, turned last year's recycled trees into humus that is now soil in the preserve's vegetable garden.

Make your own decorations: From your garden, gather some needle and broadleaf evergreens and vines to make a display. Add pine cones, seedpods, berries and fragrant herbs.

Gift ideas: Consider giving someone gardening tools, gloves, houseplants, trees, shrubs, vegetable seeds, a garden book or a subscription to a garden magazine. They will thank you all year.

Color: Try pressing flowers to add to your holiday gift giving. Press newly opened flowers between pages in a phone book with a heavy weight added for a couple of weeks. Once dried, gently remove them and incorporate into one of your projects. They make excellent bookmarks, or add them to a packet of seeds of the same flower.

Roses: Roses make wonderful gifts. If a friend has a little yard, select miniature or heirloom varieties and place in containers. These roses have the ability to bloom over a long period of time. As for your own roses, rate them and discard the bad ones. Prepare new rose beds for spring planting.

Vegetables: Make a container of vegetables and herbs for that special friend. They are space-savers that grow well on patios and in apartments. Good choices include: spinach, leaf lettuce, chard greens, basil and oregano. With last season still in mind, list what did well to help prepare for next season. Also prepare your vegetable beds for spring planting.

Fruit: Fruit trees and grapevines make excellent gifts, along with some pruning tools. Give your recipient a gift certificate to his or her favorite nursery.

Birds: Add some bird activity to your garden by feeding and watering them. If you do not have a feeder or birdseed, put it on your Christmas wish list.

Light your pathways: Light your walks with luminaries. Place 2 inches of sand in paper sacks to hold candles to produce soft, flickering lights. They are great for the festive season.

Compost leaves: To hasten leaf composting, shred them and add soil to the pile for microorganisms.

Catalogs: They are now flooding mailboxes. Look them over carefully. There's never a bad word or picture in catalogs. You forget last summer's difficulties and move on with optimism.

Bare-root plants: Near Christmas, you'll find berries, fruit trees and roses in the nurseries. They cost less and do well, but you must plant them before mid-February.

Pruning: Wait until January to prune deciduous trees to avoid diseases that eventually kill trees. I know of a housing complex pruning mulberries too early and is now in jeopardy of losing them.

Aleppo pine blight: You'll see Aleppo pines with brown needles on the southwest side of the tree. Research in Arizona found the trees suffering from drought brought on by dry winds, so soak them.

Frost: Expect a frost to happen. Plan to cover sensitive plants with cloth, burlap or cardboard boxes. Leave covering on until it warms up the next day. Avoid covering plants with plastic tarp.

If there's a deep-freeze: Water deeply but not as often; wait to prune in January or February; leave old fronds for additional protection. Postpone fertilizing ornamentals until spring. Cover frost-tender plants with burlap, a blanket or thermal blanket found at nurseries. Heavy mulch flowers and bulbs to preserve the soil warmth. Wrap exposed irrigation pipes and valves before the frost warning.

Houseplants: Keep plants away from heat vents and keep the soil moist, because they dry quickly in homes.

Lawns: Give the lawn a hard look and decide if you really need it. Lawns are exorbitant water users and require intensive care to look good.

Clean up: Keep yard clean of debris to eliminate insect hiding spots. Hoe out winter weeds.

LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES

December is rich in holiday celebrations. Join Springs Preserve staff for their "Sustainable Holidays" series with hands-on activities to make unique gifts. For more information and to reserve your space for the following events, call 822-7786 or come to the ticketing window for prices of each event. The Springs Preserve is at 333 S. Valley View Blvd.

Rain Roundup -- Water Harvesting: Rain at the Springs Preserve stays at the Springs Preserve. Learn how the preserve saves every last drop of water for its garden. This class is at 8:30 a.m. Saturday.

Transforming Garden Clippings Into Holiday Decorations: You are going to be pruning anyway, so turn those unwanted branches and foliage normally destined for the trash bin into holiday craft projects. You'll learn how to make wreaths, holiday baskets and other decorations. This is at 2 p.m. Saturday.

Plant giveaway: Here's another chance to get a free native plant similar to those grown at the Springs Preserve. That will be Dec. 21 and 24. Native plant seed packets also will be given away.

'WINTER LIGHTS FESTIVAL'

The Springs Preserve continues its first light festival. There are more than a half-million LED lights on display. The Preserve is quickly becoming a leading example of sustainable living, even during holiday celebrations.

I have a new e-mail address, so feel free to contact me through it.

Linn Mills writes a gardening column each Thursday. You can reach him at linn.mills@ springspreserve.org or at the Gardens at the Springs Preserve at 822-7754.