Be proactive in caring for plants, garden during wintry weather

I enjoy a snowstorm when I can stay home and don’t have to travel. I even like shoveling snow, to some extent. But when it comes to caring for your garden, it pays to be proactive during wintry weather.

I seldom use any chemical ice melt, but if you use it, make sure you follow the directions on ice melt bags when salting slippery areas on walks. Many people apply too much ice melt, which can cause damage to hardscape features and adjacent plants. Consider using sand on slippery areas. Mixing a small amount of ice melt with sand can also be effective and minimize the amount of ice melt used. Calcium- or potassium-based products will be less damaging to plants than sodium chloride products. Always shovel before spreading the de-icing material.

Water evergreen shrubs planted in containers during warm and dry periods. Evergreens continue to lose water through their leaves so providing supplemental water during winter will help prevent winter burn of the leaves. Containers will be frozen, for the most part, so there is no action to take until a warm spell settles in.

Cyclamen plants prefer cool indoor conditions. Water them only when the soil dries out and avoid splashing water on foliage. Remove faded flowers and their stems as soon as possible to keep the plants blooming and looking good.

There are two approaches to managing the fuel left in four- and two-cycle engine lawnmowers or leaf blowers. One option is to drain the fuel out of the gas tank. Run the engine to get all the fuel out of the fuel lines and carburetor. Fuel that sits for a long period of time ages and residues can form that may plug the small fuel jets in the carburetor. Removing the gasoline eliminates this problem.

The other option is to fill the tank and add a gas stabilizer into the gas tank and run the engine to get the treated gas into the carburetor. If you are using a gas that has ethanol in it, then it is important to use a stabilizer that is made to eliminate corrosion associated with alcohol fuels.

• Tim Johnson is director of horticulture at Chicago Botanic Garden, chicagobotanic.org.