Do your best

It’s flying again, like an annoying bug, but not an insect. I’ve seen insects around but these bugs are online and they’re memes, those things that hurtle around social garden media, copied and posted repeatably. The current version, and there are many with the same repetitive message, tells gardeners not to clean up their garden until the temperature stays above 10 Celsius. This is to protect overwintering insects — good and bad.

Memes grab attention without conveying much information, and this one, although it's well meaning isn’t accurate. They also induce guilt in many gardeners who are itching to be out, puttering around, and given what winter here does to gardens, there’s lots to clean up.

The concept was originally introduced further to the south, in a different climate than ours, clearly as the meme typically gives the temperature in Fahrenheit — 50 degrees. That’s the only instruction, with no mention of whether it’s the high for the day, night, or both, for a few days or permanently. And there are other weather variations to consider.

Regardless, around here we might be thinking we should wait until late June before every insect is awake. Except it isn’t accurate. Depending on the species, different insects have different schedules, some awakening at different times throughout the season.  Some are out in late winter – a few are already on snow drops, crocus, and heather in my garden — and others in summer. This poses a problem for anyone who wishes to be guilt free about cleaning up; it isn’t that easy.

I have a garden that is packed with plants and I have a lot of work to do in spring and not enough time, so I couldn't possibly wait until every single insect has kicked off the covers and dragged itself into the light of day. Many, including bees and butterflies, have spent the winter under leaf litter as eggs or cocoons, others tunneled into soil or snug in hollow plant stems.

I do my best as many do, by using the chop and drop method to protect insects that nest in stems. They are unlikely to care if the stems are vertical or horizontal (thin grassy stems aren’t favoured). Any clumps of dead stems that I need to remove, I set aside or lay loosely on the top of the compost heap.

As for ground dwelling insects, I leave most leaf litter alone to decompose. Along with the chopped and dropped, it feeds the soil and it might look messy, but as new foliage emerges the detritus is soon hidden. This goes for flowerbeds, but veggie gardens will typically be disturbed each spring regardless unless it’s a no till garden. One thing I don't do is mulch until early June. That allows time for the soil to warm up, seedlings to emerge, and any ground dwelling insects to appear.

So, don't get caught up on advice from a recycled meme. Do consider the many forms of life in your garden and the many ways you can be a good steward for the environment.