Offering late autumn love to your yard will help it emerge with a smile next spring

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Published Date 11/23/2022

The beginning of the holiday season is when temperatures start dropping fast, turtlenecks, boots, and jackets that have remained dormant for months begin appearing everywhere, and perhaps you breathe a sigh of relief thinking your yard work is over for a while. But is it?

Okay. So it can be a real pain to bundle up, go outside, and prepare your lawn and garden for the frigid months ahead. But if you don’t take care of some yard care tasks before temperatures fully plunge, you might face a mess of problems by spring, according to Realtor.com’s Ana Durrani.

Durrani says to put on that parka, grab your work gloves, and do a number of things to make sure your yard doesn’t become a victim of neglect over the winter months. The first is dead leaves. They’re pretty but they are subject to mold, creating a protective cover and ideal home for insects, pests, and horror film microscopic tentacles in the night. “The chances of your lawn growing back nice and green in the spring greatly increase when you do a proper fall cleanup, so don’t leave the task for wintertime,” says Durrani.

Plants in pots are not meant to last forever. Experts recommend not keeping plants, including trees and shrubs, in pots through winter because roots don’t receive proper insulation from pots like they do when they’re in the ground. Those you decide to keep should be only the hardiest of varieties. “The general rule for leaving plants in pots over the winter is that they should be able to withstand the temperatures of two growing zones colder than the zone you live in,” says master gardener Erin Schanen. She explains that pots that aren’t frost-proof—like terra cotta and some concrete ones—can crack in the winter because they absorb water, freeze, and then crack. Store extra pots in a shed, garage, or area that’s protected from moisture.

If you need a coat, so do your young trees — especially those with thin bark on your property. Wrapping them for the first few winters will protect them — especially poplar, maple, and aspen are all trees.

What made you think your pruning duties were over for the year? Tree expert Blake Watkins says wintertime pruning creates less stress for the trees. “Pruning when the leaves are gone allows climbers to see the structure of the tree when they are working. Plus, it makes cleanup easier. Most tree companies are slow in the winter, so the best rates are often available at this time,” he says.

Lawns may go dormant, but they still need love. So keep your eye on the weather report, and be sure to fertilize and aerate your lawn before the first frost of the season to offer it the nutrients and fuel it needs to survive the winter months. Aeration helps to create drainage for the wet months ahead by reducing the compaction of the soil that occurred over the hot months.

If you live in an area where wildlife roam, think about how animals like deer and rabbits will eat plants they normally wouldn’t be interested in when food is scarce in winter. “This includes eating or scraping bark as well as nibbling the tips of shrubs that may already have set flower buds, thereby eliminating the spring flowers from some plants,” says Schanen, who recommends installing a physical barrier, such as fencing or tall stakes with netting or burlap, around new, sensitive plants or those prone to damage in fall before the ground freezes.

Your lawnmower may be breathing a sigh of relief for a while, but let it rest in healthy peace by giving it some end-of-season maintenance. This includes changing the mower’s spark plug, changing the oil, replacing the air filter, and checking for broken or worn parts like the belt cover, belts, discharge chute, bag, mulch plug, and tires. And don’t forget to remove, sharpen, or replace the mower blade, so when spring springs, your handy-dandy mower goes forth in pride and good health.

Realtor, TBWS

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