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October 29, 2019

Last Minute Winter Landscape Preparations

As fall descends into winter, there are a number of last minute ways to protect your valuable landscape from the damaging effects of snow, ice and cold temperatures.[caption id="attachment_1259" align="alignleft" width="300"]

Inexpensive, portable, folding cold frame for overwinterting containerized plants.[/caption]Recently planted trees or shrubs should not be forgotten when preparing your landscape for winter. They may need to be wrapped in burlap for the winter. This is especially true for those planted close to the road where they can be damaged by spray from road salt. The wrappings can be made from easily obtained materials, specifically wood poles and burlap. Be sure to keep the top of the “tents open and don’t let the burlap touch the plant.Add extra mulch around trees and in planting beds so it’s 3 to 4 inches deep but don’t let it touch tree trunks or shrub stems. And, make a note to remove the extra mulch in the spring.Recently planted trees and shrubs may also need fertilization in the fall so soil has the nutrients needed to sustain them through the winter and when blooming and foliating in spring.If you have containerized plants on your deck, patio or elsewhere in your yard, remember that only the very hardy can survive the winter outdoors. To be safe, it’s a good idea to wrap insulation around the containers left outsode or put them in a planting bed and pile much around them.Containerized plants that are cold hardy but can’t survive wind can be overwintered in a cold frame. You can build one from scratch or buy kits or pre-fabricated cold frames from some home or garden centers or from garden supply websites. Your more tender containerized pants should be taken inside for the winter.Finally, there’s still time to apply anti-desiccant to your evergreens and both pre and post emergent weed killer to your weeds. This year, fall has arrived later than usual. Some deciduous trees haven’t even turned color yet. Trees that have turned color are still hanging on to their leaves. Most lawns still need mowing. However, I wouldn’t wait too long to get this work done. When the weather decides to turn cold, it’s apt to do it very quickly.If these are jobs you’d rather not do, we have the Plant Health Care professionals who can help you with any or all of these tasks.