Rooted Ramblings: Climate-smart gardening

Although we can’t wave a magic wand and change our weather, by gardening smartly we can continue to have resilient and flourishing gardens no matter what the weather may bring.

Excessive heat can cause rapid evaporation of water and literally bakes out nutrients from the soil. To counteract this, always heavily mulch your garden with leaves, grass clippings, wood chips, hay, straw or other organic matter. Mulching helps to reduce the temperature of the soil and to retain water.

Weather extremes can cause an increase in plant pests and pathogens. Mono-cropping tends to congregate garden pests. However, interspersing aromatic herbs, flowers and native plants in your garden will enhance the number of pollinators and beneficial insects which can boost your garden’s abundance and reduce harmful insects. Research has shown that planting more native perennial plants, minimizing or eliminating the usage of herbicides/pesticides/synthetic fertilizers, reducing rototilling or going no-till, and using a winter cover crop in your yard augments the health of soil micro-organisms. You can buy a winter cover crop from Portage County Soil and Water portageswcd. For more information about soil micro-organisms, check out this article: Understanding Soil Microbes and Nutrient Recycling.

Flooding/runoff from excessive rain can be reduced by going no-till, using cover crops or putting in a rain garden. After a heavy rain, study your yard to see how the rainwater flows and where the water congregates. Make sure the rainwater is being diverted away from your house. If you have standing rainwater, you may wish to consider putting in a rain garden filled with native plants that love moisture (like cardinal flower, blue lobelia, blue flag iris and blue star). For more information about rain gardens, see: Rain Garden Manual for Homeowners or visit a rain garden at Chadwick Arboretum and Learning Gardens in Columbus. Ohio. Ecological Engineering Society Rain Garden.

High winds can cause many issues for gardeners. If you have room in your yard, you may wish to plant a windbreak of native shrubs or native trees (like serviceberry, aronia, paw paws, oaks or other natives).

“What if each American landowner made it a goal to convert half of his or her lawn to productive native plant communities? Even moderate success could collectively restore some semblance of ecosystem function to more than 20 million acres of what is now ecological wasteland. If we restore the ecosystem function of these 20 million acres, we can create this country’s largest park system,” says Doug Tallamy, author of “Nature’s Best Hope”. 

The Portage Master Gardeners will be sponsoring a free community event with Tallamy on April 25, 2026 in Kent. Please consider attending this free talk to learn ways each of us can create healthier ecosystems in our yards, communities and beyond.

For more information on climate change, visit our booth at the Portage County Randolph Fair (Tuesday, Aug. 19-Sunday, Aug. 24).

Written by Sandy Engle, Portage County Master Gardener VolunteerOhio State University Extension Portage County Master Gardener Volunteer program. As OSU Extension Master Gardener Volunteers, our articles will never endorse specific products or companies. Questions/comments/suggestions/want to find out more/become a PCMGV: 330-296-6432 • OSU PCMGV web • portco.mgv.oh@gmail.com • FB PCMGV • PCMGV Speaker’s Bureau