Landscape Care Tips For Fall
The fall is nearly here and with it will come the changing of the leaves from shades of green to rainbows of orange, yellow and deep red. But before we get there, we need to remember a very important element to fall time landscape care, and that being water! And secondly, nutrients.
Essential landscape care tips
Now that September is here, it is time to help our plants recover from summer, as well as strengthen their roots for fall, and eventually winter. We need to do that by providing nutrients and moisture.
First off, just because it is getting cooler, don’t stop watering your plants or your lawn.
Of course, annuals like petunias or impatiens will continue to spit out high-powered flowers for another 8 weeks or so. You have to keep them watered. Do this and see just how long they last into winter!
On top of that, your “woody ornamentals” such as spirea, dogwood and burning bush need the fall moisture to hold their leaves longer. Remember, we love the fall color and want to prolong it. Watering your bushes now will help them hold their fall-colored leaves longer! Awesome!
In addition, evergreens such as boxwood, holly and more traditionals such as taxus yews and arboivitae can also benefit from good watering before winter to keep then from drying out in cold winter winds.
Lawns are a little less finicky, but they still need watering during those later hot spells, especially if you have dog pee spots on your lawn from the summer. It is important to wash away the lingering urine and re-establish the lawn. Some fresh grass seed will also need to be added, making the moisture all the more important. Lawn care never ends until the snow covers the turf!
Secondly, add in some nutrients that will help these plants survive the winter and last into the next spring. Wouldn’t it be great if your plants had a fast and glorious start next March? The way to do this is to add some nutrients now.
Be sure that your fertilizer contains good amounts of potassium and phosphorus as these strengthen the roots system. Stronger roots make the bush or tree live longer, but also help them look better in the long run.
Finally, you need to prune back the shrubs just before winter. Clip off the overgrowth after all the leaves drop off. The best time of year to prune your trees and shrubs is when the plants are going into dormancy. This way, you keep them in check size-wise without stressing them out.
Whatever you do, the main element here is the moisture. You need to keep your trees and shrubs watered from now until the temperatures drop below 50 degrees consistently. Start this process now and you will see a longer fall color pop, as well as better leaf-out next spring.
