Winter Camping

We have a row of shrubs directly in the avalanche zone of our house. For those that don’t know, slate and metal roofs are notorious for dumping snow on whatever happens to be underneath. All the snow, all at once.

The first year after we reorganized the landscaping out front, I built large wooden covers to put over the tiny new plants. They were functional, but horribly ugly. And they blocked the sunlight, which seemed to hurt the plants during the following spring. I gave up on the covers once the shrubs seemed big enough to withstand a direct hit.

Since then I’ve checked out the strategies that others use to protect their landscaping. This one is my current favorite because it not only keeps the snow off, but it is also everything that my solution was not. It lets some light through to the plants, and is actually attractive looking. It’s like the Khaki Scouts of Moonrise Kingdom right in the front yard.

Winter Camping

4 thoughts on “Winter Camping

  1. I want to know why a few of the shrubs don’t have tents. What did they do wrong? What would happen if the tents were rearranged and different shrubs were exposed? Would their be a shrub riot? Inquiring neighbors want to know…

  2. So here’s the scoop on the missing tent. Kate gave these to me as a Xmas gift at my request. This is what we get excited about for xmas gifts after10 yrs of marriage she bought them on amazon but they were very popular and did not have enough in stock for the entire hedge. I’ve had a problem with them blowing off however I have not staked them down with the supplied stakes as I keep getting my timing wrong with the frozen ground. On a side note I have had trouble keeping the bushes closest to the sidewalk alive due to their popularity with the dogs. I’ve had to replace those every year. I’m hoping the tents will help in that regard as well.

  3. Wow, thanks for the update! We definitely like the look, it’s a very elegant approach to the challenge. And we’re happy to flag down rogue tents and return them if that’s what it takes.

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