With old man winter knocking at the door it's time to begin thinking seriously about preparing your lawn for winter. A little advance preparation now will help your lawn endure the winter weather and rebound quickly in the spring. Spring will be here soon enough, and it pays to think ahead.
Turf
- Now is the time to get those last few leaves composted or removed from the lawn. Heavy piles of unmulched leaves block sunlight, air movement, and moisture to the soil. A thin layer of mulched leaves is good, but it must be thin enough to allow the sun, air, and water to reach the grass.
- Mulched leaves won't supply enough nutrients needed for healthy turf. Apply Snowman, winter root builder before the ground is frozen. Snowman fertilizer is low nitrogen with added phosphorous and potash for root growth and disease resistance. Grass roots will continue to grow till the soil is frozen hard.
- Salt from ice melter used on roads, driveways and sidewalks can cause serious damage to turf, trees, and small shrubs. To reduce salt damage apply a heavy application of Grass Pad's Lawn Cal containing lawn calcium. A granular application of Lawn Cal helps to bind the damaging salts to the soil, preventing sodium from being absorbed by plant roots.
- Dormant seeding thin or bare areas in the lawn can start now.
Trees & Shrubs
- Prune or cut off any dead growth from trees and shrubs to discourage insects who choose to hide there for the winter. Remove branches that overlap and rub against each other.
- Avoid pruning spring flowering shrubs such as lilac, azalea, and certain hydrangea. These shrubs form their spring flower buds over late summer and fall. Any pruning of these shrubs, though not life threatening, will be removing spring flowers. Prune spring flower shrubs after the bloom petals have fallen next spring.
- Dormant oil can now be applied over burning bush, euonymous, pines or spruce to control scale and other insect eggs, such as spider mites.
- Fertilize mature trees and large shrubs using fertilizer spikes or a root feeder. Medium to small shrubs can be fertilized easily using Uncle's Tree Food granular fertilizer and a hand spreader. Newly installed trees and shrubs should be fertilized withUncle's Root Accelerator to encourage root establishment.
- Protect young trees from animals by wrapping stem or trunks with wire mesh. Smooth bark trees such as Red maples should be protected with tree wrap to prevent sun scalding.
Perennials
- Cut back dry stems to soil level to prevent rotting in flower beds.
- Plant spring-blooming bulbs such as tulips, daffodils, crocus, and hyacinth.
- Mulch flower beds before extremely cold weather arrive. Adding a fresh layer of mulch around plantings will give the landscape a neat and tidy appearance while keeping the temperatures around the plants consistent. Mulch will hold moisture in the soil, which is one of the most important parts of fighting winter stress.
Tools
- Store your small engines for winter. Read tips from Popular Mechanics.
- Oil garden hand tools to extend their life. A thin layer of vegetable oil will help to protect your shovels, spades, axes and hoes from moisture and winter rust.
- Remove your hoses from outdoor spigots. Store garden hoses in a shed, garage or basement.
Bird Feeders
- Clean bird feeders each season.
- Bird houses provide shelter from the weather and a haven from cats and other predators.
- As temperatures fall, high fat, high-calorie suet is the perfect food to help birds get through long cold nights.
- Keep a low level of fresh water in a clean bird bath. A bird bath heater will keep the water from freezing.
