Fall means football, visits to your favorite local pumpkin patch, halloween & Thanksgiving bounty. It also means it’s time to get your landscape ready for winter. The right preparation now will save you time and energy when spring rolls around, and will keep you and your family safe in the yard year-round. Make sure you get the most out of your landscape next year by following our 15 point checklist of fall/winter preparation
1. Clean up leaves and debris
Fallen leaves and weeds are the perfect place for pests to settle in for the winter. Clear out your landscape beds to keep the critters at bay. Pay special attention to roses, as their foliage can foster disease over the winter.
2. Clean out vegetable garden
After the final harvest, pull out old vegetable plants and remove debris. If you compost, now is the time to add a layer of compost to help nurture your soil for planting next spring.
3. Spread Compost:
if you’ve got a composter going, spread a layer of compost over your garden or empty flower beds. Allow it to stay undisturbed over the winter, and work it under in the spring. The compost will break down a little more through the winter under the snow and will help enrich your soil when you mix it in next year.
4. Prune trees and shrubs
Trim any dead branches and cut back overgrown trees and bushes. If you have spring-blooming perennials like lilac or forsythia, now is the time to prune without risking blooms.
Trim up dead, damaged, or diseased branches you didn’t get to in the summer. Prune out-of-place tree branches that may cause trouble during the winter. You don’t want any branches breaking and falling during the snowfall to come.
5. Clean out the gutters
Not all fall cleanup is in the yard. This is the perfect time to clear leaves and other debris from rain gutters. Check for proper drainage, clear out any blockages with a small garden trowel, and rinse with a hose.
6. Winterize irrigation and water features
Drain all water from hoses, fountains, and drip irrigation systems, and store them in a dry place. Water left standing over the winter may damage your equipment. See our pond winterization blog
7. Aerate
Break up soil to keep water from pooling and guarantee that nutrients will reach the roots over the winter. A garden fork will do the job for small yards, but larger yards may require a walk-behind aerator, which should be available to rent for a reasonable price.
8. Fertilize the lawn
Send your yard into winter with the nutrients it needs to survive the long, cold sleep. Fall feeding is one of the most critical feeding times. A healthy and stable plant can endure the hardship of winter better than a weak plant. Winterizer builds winter hardiness, stem strength and disease resistance in lawns, trees and shrubs. Add a winterizer lawn fertilizer with high phosphorous content to encourage root growth and enjoy a lush, green lawn come spring. We recommend Fertilome Winterizer
9. Rake and mulch
Don’t let fallen leaves get the best of you; if left unattended they can suffocate the grass. Rake them up, shred them, and use them as mulch for young trees, shrubs, and flower beds. You might even be able to skip the raking part if you use a lawn mower to mulch the leaves in your yard.
10. Mulch Young Plants
Keep sensitive perennials, shrubs, and roses in top shape through the cold days of winter. Add mulch to the base and wrap plants in cloth barriers to prevent damage from freezing. Depending on the hardiness of the plant and your climate, you can use a single sheet or blanket or wrap them in a combination of cloth and plastic.
Give new beds a layer of mulch—chopped leaves, weed-free straw, or wood chips—after a light frost, but before the ground freezes. Till decomposed layers of organic mulch into the soil, then apply a fresh 2- to 4-inch layer (more will smother roots) to keep new plantings warm and to control water runoff and soil erosion.
11. Give it one last mow
Set your mower to a low setting and give the lawn a close buzz before winter sets in. This helps the soil dry out more quickly in the spring, which leads to a lusher lawn.
12. Divide and cut back perennials
If your perennials really took off this year, go ahead and spread the love. Divide plants and transplant them to other area in the landscape beds where they will also do well. This saves money and time in the spring. Fall-blooming perennials like mums shouldn’t be divided now—wait and divide them in the spring.
13. Plant bulbs, shrubs, and fall annuals
Some plants do best when planted in the fall. If you want to add new shrubs or spring bulbs like tulips, now is the time to get them in the ground. Fall annuals like pansies are also a great addition to keep some color in your yard as other plants go to sleep.
14. Protect the deck
Prevent the growth of mold and mildew by giving the deck a good power wash. If you don’t have a pressure washer, you can rent one from your favorite local rental center. Once the deck is clean and dry, add a weatherproofing stain to protect the wood from moisture damage over the winter.
15. Clean tools and store them
Don’t throw your gardening tools in the shed and forget about them until spring. Take time to give them a good cleaning and add a light coat of oil to prevent rust during the cold season.
Even if you only get a few of these done, you’ll have a much easier time getting ready for gardening next spring. If you follow this checklist you’ll have the perfectly winterized yard that will provide you with a lush, green landscape when the warm weather returns. And, if you get some lovely spring bulbs in, you’ll have some beautiful pops of color to look forward to as soon as the snow melts.