HOW TO AVOID SALT DAMAGE ON PERENNIALS, TREES, AND SHRUBS
Winters in Indianapolis get pretty icy, and once those sidewalks get slippery, the de-icer comes out. The problem is, while this keeps our city safer, the salt can cause considerable damage to our landscape plants. Even if you don’t use a salt de-icer on your property, it can be hard to avoid when it’s applied on streets and sidewalks all across the city. That leads many gardeners to ask us the same question: how do I protect my plants from salt?
There are several different methods of salt damage prevention to help keep your perennials, trees, and shrubs healthy and green. If the salt situation is significant, you can use a combined approach to minimize the risk of salt burns, yellowing foliage, and dead plants.
How Do I Protect My Plants from Salt?
It’s challenging to help your plants bounce back from bad salt burns, and high sodium levels can disrupt the balance of soil nutrients and bacteria. Taking the time to prevent salt damage will save you a ton of effort—and potential heartbreak—in the long run.
Use Barriers to Protect Your Plants
Physical barriers like burlap, landscape fabric, and mulch can help to minimize contact between salt and your landscape plants. Mulch is especially effective at protecting the roots of your trees and shrubs from salt, as it helps block some of the de-icer from soaking directly into the soil. Wrapping evergreen trees and shrubs in burlap can block salt spray from street traffic, and it also has the added benefit of minimizing frost damage.
Use Non-Sodium De-icer
There are other ways to melt ice on the pavement! De-icer formulas with alternative ingredients like magnesium chloride, calcium chloride, potassium chloride, and calcium magnesium acetate will work great, although they are a bit more expensive. To lower costs, you can use a little less formula and then follow it up with an application of sand or sawdust to improve traction and prevent slipping.
Plant Salt Tolerant Trees, Shrubs, and Perennial Plants
If you’re having trouble avoiding salt in your landscape, you can make the switch over to salt-tolerant plants that can withstand some salt contact without developing burns or other signs of damage. Look at this research by Purdue University Extension; it provides an extensive list of salt-tolerant trees and shrubs that are ideal for Indianapolis.
Treating Salt Damage in Your Plants
It isn’t the most simple garden problem to tackle, but there are certainly things you can do to help your plants and soil recover from salt contact. If you’re worried about sodium buildup in the soil, flush it out by watering generously early in the morning and amend the soil with compost and gypsum. Prune off all damaged parts of your plants—this helps direct energy to new, healthy growth.
With the help of these guidelines, no longer shall you find yourself asking, “How do I protect my plants from salt?” If you need salt prevention barrier materials, sodium-free solutions, or salt-tolerant plants, visit Dammann’s Garden Company to stock up on all the essentials you’ll need for winter. Protect your plants, and stay safe on those slippery streets!