Q. Now that growing season is drawing to a close, how can we prepare our Grow-Boxes for winter? What are the best ways to cover them or protect them without having to move them? Do we need to treat the soil or do anything else to “winterize” our garden?
A. As soon as a crop is mature it should be harvested, and as quickly as a crop is picked from the plant the plant should be removed from the soil.
If the plant is clean and free of disease or bugs it can be tilled right into the ground, where it will compost naturally over the winter months and improve the tilth or texture of the soil, along with adding a small amount of nutrients.
Covering the Grow-Boxes is not necessary, and no soil treatments are necessary or recommended.
One thing you can do is to add more sawdust/sand mixture to fill up the boxes.
It’s generally preferable to wait for Spring to add the fertilizers for next year’s crops, as nitrogen is volatile and other nutrients may become “fixed” or adhered to the soil particles and unavailable to the plants.
