Is Your Yard Ready For Winter?

Fall is officially here. The leaves are changing colours, days are getting shorter, and the air is noticeably cooler. The team at Nutri-Lawn Vancouver has put together this quick list of yard maintenance tasks to help you get your landscaping and gardens ready for the cold winter weather ahead.

Clean the gutters

To avoid water problems that can cause leaks or dangerous ice formations, clean your gutters every fall. Keeping gutters free of leaves and other organic debris means your eaves troughs will drain as they’re meant to and you will avoid any damage from snow and ice build-up.

Prune trees and hedges

Hedges, trees, bushes and shrubs all need to be trimmed and pruned back at various times. Some plants prefer to be trimmed after they’ve finished blooming because they only flower on older growth (lilac, forsythia and rhododendron for instance). Other plants prefer to be pruned back once they’re dormant in the fall and winter (deciduous trees, fruit trees, burning bush, etc.) Fall is a great time to trim back any dead or diseased branches or stems, and remove any shoots growing where you don’t want them to.

Clean up and till vegetable gardens

Once your garden is finished for the season and the threat of that first frost approaches, cleaning up your vegetable garden will make spring planting easier. Fall is a great time to amend the soil (if needed) and till the ground. Spring is more exciting when you spend your time planting and not cleaning up after last year.

Plant bulbs (dig up and store bulbs)

Some bulbs should be planted in fall so they bloom sooner in spring. Some bulbs need to be dug up and stored indoors for the winter to survive the cold. Dahlia, calla and gladiolas need to be dug up before the first frost, but now is a great time to invest in those spring bulbs everyone enjoys such as tulips, daffodils, hyacinths, and crocus.

Cut back and divide/transplant perennials

Dividing and transplanting perennials can be done in the spring, but if you don’t time it well you can hinder that plant’s growth for that season. Cutting back, dividing and transplanting in the fall means the ground is easier to work with, often the weather is nicer, and the plants will bloom as usual in their new location. Wait until the plant has finished blooming for the season before moving them.

Protect cold-sensitive plants

Some plants require extra care in the cold winter months, either from wind (drying out or bending/breaking), snow and ice, or the cold. Depending on what the plant needs protection from, you may want to stake the plant, wrap it in burlap or put in stakes and wrap the stakes to create a protective wind shelter. Winter winds can dry out leaves. The weight of snow and ice can bend, misshape, or break branches. Road and sidewalk salt will cause significant damage if the plant isn’t adequately protected.

Do you have questions about getting your lawn ready for its winter slumber? Look no further – check out our lawn care tips here. And Contact Nutri-Lawn Vancouver today for a complimentary quote.