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Ways to Create Microclimates in Your Yard for Greater Gardening Success

Author Bio

Emma Gallagher is a Brit living in North Carolina. She grows organic gardens and... Read More

Most gardeners have a rough idea of what can and can’t grow in their region. Even those at a loss have access to wonderful resources online, such as the USDA growing zone map, that can give at least a general idea of what you may or may not have success growing in your veggie or flower patch.

However, these general guides don’t account for localized variations in the landscape that go beyond just knowing average temperatures. Wind, sun, shade, humidity, and soil moisture all play a part in the success of a plant, and believe it or not, these are actually things that you can safely play around with.

What Is a Microclimate?

Source: Gardening Know How/YouTube

A microclimate can be natural or humanmade. Microclimates refer to localized variations in the landscape that can change the humidity, moisture, warmth of the soil, or how much shade or sunlight there is. As far as ‘local’ goes, this could be a larger feature such as a valley that can create shelter from massive weather events or even create wind tunnels, forested areas that create shade, or rivers and creeks that make wetlands.

On a much smaller scale, a microclimate could be the shade beneath that one tree that you planted in your yard, that brick wall that emanates accumulated heat throughout winter nights, or a hand-dug pond that creates a small wetland within your otherwise dry yard. Natural hills and dips in your landscape can also change the moisture in your soil.

The great thing about understanding microclimates on a small scale is that you can actually play around with them by using the ones already in place or creating others to have much more success with the range of plants that you can grow.

Creating Warmth

tomato plant growing

Source: Chris Breeze/Flickr

This is especially important if you live in a more temperate climate with winters that receive frost. Lots of tropical perennials are not able to withstand the cold of winter and are often grown as annuals in these climates. As well, some plants need specific high temperatures in the summer and won’t thrive without them. Rather than give up on these plants completely, there are ways to add some warmth to areas of your garden by accumulating thermal mass.

If you have a south-facing brick or stone wall in your garden this will trap heat throughout the heat of the day and release heat in the cooler temperatures of the night. By planting heat-loving plants next to these thermal mass walls, you could create the perfect microclimate.

Another way to do this is to plant heat-loving plants around large rocks, or asphalt sidewalks. You can even fill plastic bottles full of water that heats up during the day and surround your plant with them. Even though summer nights might not get terribly cold, it can help to keep the temperature just that little bit warmer for heat-hungry plants like tomatoes and peppers.

Offering Shade

Some plants, shrubs, and trees are designed for the understory and thrive in the shade, making the most of all of that space underneath taller canopy plants. As well, there are lots of plants that, though they can grow in the summer, are really simply cool weather crops and really struggle, especially in the afternoon heat.

For these plants, you can manufacture shaded spots for them. Lots of greens, such as lettuce, arugula, and cilantro struggle in the heat and bolt early, leaving you with a bunch of seeds but no salad. For this problem, try to plant such plants in the understory of taller growing things.

Underneath cucumber or bean trellises is a great spot for a patch of lettuce. Plant a few greens on the shadier side of a tall tomato plant. This is not to say that they are devoid of sunlight altogether, but that they are given some respite from the blazing afternoon sun.

Providing Shelter

Source: Huw Richards/YouTube

Not all plants are equipt for handling wind. Strong winds can break delicate branches from young trees, knock over tall stalks and blow down bean trellises. If your area is subject to strong winds, you can look into creating some windbreaks. This can be as grand as building a windbreak fence, as long term as planting a row of windbreaking trees, or as micro as using a bit of shade cloth or netting to protect small tender plants from high gusts.

A really fun way to add a windbreak to your garden would be to plant an edible windbreak. This could be a row of blackberry or raspberry bushes that are grown to form a formidable screen with maybe some dwarf fruit trees interplanted.

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