It’s Time to Put Your Lawns and Gardens to Bed in South Central PA

It’s Time to Put Your Lawns and Gardens to Bed in the South Central PA Area

What should we be doing in our landscape this time of year?  Seems this is a big part of what we should be doing in the next few days in South Central PA, but there are also a great number of other jobs that either help you with end-of-season cleanup, or let you get a jump on the 2014 garden.

Wrap up planting your tulips, daffodils, hyacinths, crocuses and other spring-flowering bulbs before the ground freezes.  You will be pleasantly surprised over the Winter months if you pot up some to force for indoor blooms.

Bring in hoses (if ground is sufficiently damp), clay pots, rain gauges and any breakable ornaments or fountains to prevent freeze damage.

Fertilize the lawn one last time if you didn’t do it toward the end of October.

Cut the grass shorter for the last time (about 2 inches) and make sure leaves aren’t numerous enough that they’re matting down the grass.

Clean and store lawn mower and garden tools for the winter. Drain gas from all gas-powered yard tools.  Agway has a helpful list on their website talking about gas lawn mowers and others tools, and the maintenance you should provide prior to tucking them away for the Winter. A little prevented care for your “tools” will save a lot of frustration in the Spring!

Cut to the ground any remaining perennial foliage, except for mums, sedum, ornamental grasses and plants with seeds that you want to leave for birds (i.e. coneflowers and black-eyed susans).  In windy locations, provide windbreaks made out of burlap for borderline-hardy broadleaf evergreens such as rhododendrons, hollies and laurels. 

For plants damaged by ice and snow sliding off rooftops in the past, provide extra support in the form of erect barriers over. To protect young trees and shrubs from gnawing damage from rodents and rabbits, place small mesh screens several inches below the soil surface to 2 feet above the usual snow line. 

Prevent frost cracks on young thin-barked trees such as maples and fruit trees by wrapping trunks with tree wrap or by painting them with white latex paint. Mulch newly planted perennial beds after the ground freezes.

Scatter a granular fertilizer around trees and shrubs after all the leaves have dropped. It’s also OK to fertilize perennial beds now. If the ground in your area has already frozen, wait to fertilize after the Winter.  For a free nutrient-rich mulch, place a six inch layer of shredded leaves on the garden beds.

Place a net over the water garden until leaves are all down and done blowing around.  To overwinter frogs in the water, you can let some leaves remain in the bottom of your water garden, sink a dishpan or large plastic pots filled with clay soil, so they have a place to burrow into to hibernate.

This week, start a few paperwhite, amaryllis and pre-chilled hyacinth bulbs if you would like to have special blooms over the Christmas holidays.

Your lawn and gardens will reap rewards in the Spring if you take the time to “put them to bed” in the next few days.