Overwintering: Keep Your Garden Alive Through Winter

When the nights turn icy and the frost bites, overwintering, the practice of protecting plants and outdoor spaces from freezing temperatures to ensure survival through winter. Also known as winter protection, it’s not just for greenhouses—it’s essential for artificial grass, flower beds, fruit bushes, and even your lawn. If you’ve ever looked out in January and wondered why your garden looks dead, the answer isn’t always neglect. It’s often a lack of overwintering steps that keep roots, blades, and buds alive until spring.

Overwintering isn’t a one-size-fits-all task. It changes based on what you’re protecting. For artificial grass, synthetic turf that needs to stay flat, clean, and free from ice damage, it means removing leaves, avoiding heavy snow buildup, and checking for sand infill shifts. For fruit bushes, hardy shrubs like raspberries, blackcurrants, and gooseberries that need pruning and mulch to survive cold snaps, it’s about wrapping stems, applying compost around roots, and delaying pruning until late winter. Even unheated greenhouses, simple structures that trap heat during daylight to protect tender plants need insulation, ventilation, and cleaning to prevent mold and frost pockets.

You don’t need fancy gear. A thick layer of mulch, a breathable horticultural fleece, or even a pile of straw can make the difference between a dead garden and a thriving one come April. Overwintering works because it slows down damage—not by stopping winter, but by giving your plants time to rest safely. Think of it like putting your lawn to bed with a blanket instead of leaving it bare. The same logic applies to soil health, weed control, and even the tools you leave outside. Moisture, wind, and freezing temps wear down everything. Protecting your garden isn’t optional in the UK. It’s the smartest thing you can do to save time, money, and effort next spring.

Below, you’ll find real guides from UK gardeners who’ve cracked the code on winter survival—from how to prep your artificial grass for snow to which fruit bushes need the most help, and why vinegar sprays or coffee grounds might backfire when frost hits. No fluff. Just what works.