Protecting Urns with Burlap for the Winter
You know winter is just around the corner when various ornamental vessels around my farm are covered in burlap.
As many of you know, I've been covering shrubs and hedges with burlap for many years to protect the branches from splaying and even breaking from the weight of snow and ice. Every season, our wrapping methods become easier and more streamlined, giving me peace of mind during the cold weather months. I feel it is equally important to protect my outdoor garden ornaments from the harsh winter elements. A winter freeze, alternating with thaws, could crack or crumble any kind of stone or cement, especially if it is antique. During this time, all my outdoor planters, birdbaths, stanchions, etc., are covered in the same burlap used for my live specimens.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
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- Because stone and cement are porous and sensitive to harsh elements, this stanchion and all the urns around the farm are also covered with industrial strength plastic. Rolls of this plastic can be ordered online or purchased at a local hardware and home supply store.
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- Phurba secures the plastic around the bottom and the top, so it is snug around the stanchion. I have four faux bois stanchions along the carriage road in front of my Winter House – they were used to block the road during television shoots.
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- Phurba measures the stanchion to see how much burlap will be needed to cover it.
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- Next, Phurba cuts the burlap fabric to fit. When we can, we reuse burlap from seasons past, but some of the smaller pieces get new burlap every year. Burlap is available in giant rolls of 40-inches or 60-inches wide.
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- Phurba wraps the burlap around the stanchion. There is a lot of tucking involved, and a lot of stitching and knotting, but my crew has been covering these containers with burlap every year for quite some time – they are all excellent burlap sewers.
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- The needles are specially designed for sewing jute. These five-inch long needles have large eyes and bent tips. They’re made of nine-gauge steel. Every member of my outdoor grounds crew has a needle.
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- To sew the burlap, we use jute twine. It is all-natural and the same color as the burlap.
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- Starting from the bottom, Phurba makes small stitches and knots to keep the burlap in place. He also makes sure the burlap protects as much of the bottom as possible to prevent moisture from getting in.
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- Once the burlap is secured underneath, Phurba begins working his way up, stitching the fabric together and pulling the burlap snug.
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- Then Phurba sews up the open side.
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- Lastly, Phurba sews up the burlap at the top of the stanchion, tucking in any loose ends as he goes.
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- These stanchions are now ready for winter.
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- Down at the stable courtyard, this stone birdbath is first completely emptied of water. The plywood is cut to fit the top opening and then Phurba covers the entire birdbath with a sheet of the same heavy-duty plastic before this layer of burlap.
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- Starting from the bottom, Phurba makes small stitches and knots to keep the burlap in place. The burlap should be sewn tightly, but with some space for air circulation. The ends at the top are folded over in the same way a gift is wrapped and then sewn closed.
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- The burlap is sewed snug, so it forms to the shape of the birdbath.
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- And in the end, they look like burlap art. Here is the front of the stable office – the urns and birdbaths look so neat and tidy. It doesn’t take too long to cover the piece, but because the burlap is exposed to the elements for several months, Phurba does this task very carefully.
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- Behind my Summer House, six smaller and very heavy planters are also covered every fall. These containers are grouped together and covered in the same way as all the others and then tucked to the side of the terrace, where they will stay until we pot them up in the spring.
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- These pots are quite heavy – too heavy to move indoors for the season, so they get wrapped up just like the bigger urns.
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- Here they are all wrapped for the cold weather. Burlap is so useful for many gardening projects – it is inexpensive, biodegradable, and the color and texture of burlap is so pretty to use.
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- Two large faux bois planters are covered with burlap and kept in place flanking the door to the Summer House. I showed how to cover these urns on my show “Martha Know’s Best.” I hope you caught the episode.
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- Outside my blog studio, are these air conditioning units. Most of the units are in pits which are covered for the cold months, but because these are exposed, we also cover them with burlap.
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- Phurba carefully stitches each side creating a well-fitted corner.
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- And then ties the end twine in a knot. Very nice sewing, Phurba. It looks great.
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- This urn is one of a pair of stately Kenneth Lynch garden urns flanking the entrance to the flower cutting garden. They are more than 500-pounds each. The pair is usually one of the first to get wrapped in burlap before each cold season.
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- These two urns will be well-protected from the elements until they are uncovered and planted again. There is still so much “burlapping” to do around the farm. The project continues with all the many boxwood shrubs and hedges that will be covered in the weeks ahead. Do you wrap any of your outdoor vessels? Let me know your comments on our burlap wrapping process.
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