A wave of great cold should fall in a few days all over France. According to Météo France, temperatures will drop as of Saturday and frosts will spread from Sunday. As the garden is very sensitive to sudden drops in temperature, several preventative works can help protect trees and plants from rain, freezing wind and frost. Here are some "saving gestures", to realize in his garden, his orchard or on his balcony.

Install a wintering veil
The installation of a wintering veil makes it possible to protect the slightly rustic and exotic plants (bougainvillea, banana, geranium, camellia ...) against the cold winds and the nocturnal frosts. Made of soft polypropylene, it is light and transparent, and lets the plant breathe without damaging it . It can be used as an individual bell by completely wrapping a plant or a shrub (do not tighten the knot at the base), or flat, placed directly on the crops of a kitchen garden . In this case, the veil can be stretched by stakes at the four corners or held by stones at the periphery so that it can easily be removed for watering, weather permitting.

Make a hilling
This simple and economical technique consists of raising the earth in the form of a hillock at the foot of the plants . Practiced mainly on rose bushes, certain fragile perennials and stem or bulb vegetables (asparagus, artichokes, leeks, cardoons, etc.), ridging can be completed with a layer of dead leaves and potting soil.

Install a plastic tunnel
Plastic tunnels sold in garden centers are used to winter vegetable boards and young seedlings of the garden (lamb's lettuce, salads, sorrel, leeks, etc.). They must be removed to allow watering.

Mulching fragile plants
Straw, bark, branches and dead leaves constitute a very good protection for the roots of the most chilly plants . Mulches should be placed at the base and should be aerated regularly after the rains to avoid the risk of rotting.

The pot of earth and the bell
Returned, a pot of soil can effectively protect the strains of small plants that lose their leaves in winter. The drain hole then serves as a vent. The pot should be removed as soon as the first leaves appear. For evergreen plants, use a clear bell with a vent hole.

Tear off bulbous plants
Bulbous or tuberous plants that do not withstand moisture, such as dahlias or begonias, can be dug up for a warm winter . When the leaves have disappeared after the first frosts, the stumps are torn off and placed in crates inside a room or garage, protected from frost.

All pots at shelters
In a pot, the roots suffer more from cold than in the ground. On the eve of the first frost, the pots should take the direction of a shelter. Plants that keep their leaves in winter are placed in a bright place; a veranda, a greenhouse, or inside the house, near a window. Large pots that can not be moved will be covered with several layers of a plastic sail or tarpaulin.