Autumn is a wonderful time of the year. The extreme heat of summer finally begins to subside and the leaves start changing into a beautiful array of colors, signaling that winter is on its way. Nonetheless, once the nights start getting cooler, it is important that you also change up your routine to keep your plants healthy throughout the cold. For this reason, we’ll provide you with some important lawn, plant and landscaping maintenance tips to remember once the weather begins turning cold.
Pay Special Attention to Sensitive Plants and Shrubs
If you have any potted plants as part of your landscaping, you will need to start paying special attention to them once the weather starts getting cooler. Should you plan on keeping your plants throughout the winter, it is important that they are in a large, well-insulated container and kept up off the ground. The colder weather can quickly cause the roots to freeze and thus killing off the plant, so it is essential that they are well protected.
Even if you’re not planning on your plants living through the winter, you can still extend their life by ensuring that they are properly shielded from the cold or taking them inside when the temperature drops too low. No matter whether it is garden plants or a flower bed, you might consider covering the plants with plastic to help keep them from getting too cold or being exposed to frost.
Autumn Is the Ideal Time to Prune Trees and Shrubs
Now that the summer heat is finally starting to be over, you should begin considering having your trees pruned. Generally speaking, it is best to prune trees and shrubs either during winter or early spring, but it’s still never too early to start thinking about it. Although some species do respond well to autumn pruning, the problem is that this is the time when most types of decay fungi release their spores.
Pruning leaves a wound in the tree and this wound leaves the tree extremely susceptible to disease should the wound become infected with decay fungi spores. There is usually nothing wrong with doing a bit of basic trimming and cutting off dead branches during the fall, but it is always best to put off the full-scale major pruning for a few months until winter arrives.
Changing up your lawn and landscaping maintenance routine is essential once the cool weather rolls in. You will obviously not need to mow and water your lawn as frequently. However, you should definitely consider using the time you saved on these tasks to take care of your other pressing needs and ensure that your lawn and landscaping look fantastic when the warm weather finally comes back around.