Connecticut Garden Journal: Mending fences. . .and hoses and pruners, and trimmers, and more

This Thanksgiving season is a good time to mend fences. I'm not talking just about relations with family and friends, but literally, fixing your garden fences. The weather is cool, the ground hasn't frozen yet and it's a good time to assess not only fences, but other garden tools and features to see if they need fixing, removing or replacing. Let's start with the fence. We have a 7-foot-tall wire fence around the main part of our garden for deer control. It's worked well except for the occasional errant deer that tries to jump the fence every few years. That means it's been bent and broken in places. We've been cutting and mending that fence so the deer stay on “their side” of the garden. This is true for wooden and plastic mesh fences as well. Hoses and nozzles always seem to leak for us after a few years. First of all, drain them of water well and store the hoses in a dry, protected spot in winter. This will reduce cracking and breaking of the hose and couplings. Check the nozzles and, if they leak at the point of contact with the hose, get a new O-ring rubber washer to fit in the nozzle. Clean the nozzle as well. Take a good look at your cutting tools such as hand pruners, hedge trimmers and loopers. Clean and sharpen the blades now and oil the movable parts. Finally, do an assessment of what needs replacing such as grow lights, plant markers and plant stakes and do a little shopping now since you're already in the holiday spirit.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.