I think that snow can be a beautiful thing, as long as I don’t have to shovel it or drive through it to work through it every day. This is a big benefit of retirement.

But snow can show off the bones of your landscape by highlighting not only your structures like arbors and fences but also the natural beauty of plants, such as ornamental grasses, shrubs and trees. This is when I enjoy putting on my boots and heading out for a walk through this winter wonderland.

The obvious benefit of snow cover is it acts as insulator to our garden beds. Consider it being a cozy natural blanket covering our gardens. Without this snow cover, cold temperatures can freeze the ground causing damage to root systems and freeze the water contained in plant cells of exposed plants, causing them to die.

Snow also protects from harsh drying winter winds and slows the freeze / thaw cycle that can heave your plants’ roots out of the ground. I’m sure we’ve all had to “re-set” plants that pop out of the ground when snow levels are small. Your snow blanket also acts as a mulch over your garden and preserves its ideal humidity levels and temperature.

On sunny winter days some bulbs might break dormancy and sprout, exposing them to harsh weather conditions leading to their wilting. Snow delays these plants from blooming at the wrong time by cooling their bulbs.

Some seeds need stratification, which is the natural moist cooling period required in order to germinate. Snow helps trigger their germination. I’ve sometimes placed seed packets in my refrigerator to give them the required temperature before planting.

“The Old Farmer’s Almanac” calls snow the “poor man’s fertilizer.” As snow falls through the atmosphere, nitrogen attaches to the snowflakes providing a natural fertilizer boost to plants. Nebraska Extension tells us snow and rain together fixes about 10 pounds of nitrogen per acre per year.

Snow preserves moisture in soil during winter and provides water to soil as it melts in spring slowly watering emerging plants. Studies at the University of Colorado show some organisms are more active under snow and are able to break down grass clippings and plant liter more efficiently, creating nutrients for your garden.

One negative aspect of snow is that heavy, wet snowfalls can cause damage to trees and shrubs by causing branches to break. Another is that snow can provide cover from predators that aids in the survival of destructive voles and mice who feed on our plants. And when snow accumulates inches and inches, rabbits and deer are able to reach higher to be able to do damage to trees and shrubs.

The biggest benefit of snow is that it gives us a break from our gardening chores. I really need and enjoy this down time. Bring on the hot cocoa, light the fireplace, curl up with garden catalogs while dreaming of spring flowers and new gardens.

To learn more about the benefits of snow in the garden, go to http://go.osu.edu/snowbenefits.

Baytos is an Ohio State University Mahoning County Extension Master Gardener volunteer.