Winterize Your Yard

With the first frost rapidly approaching, it’s time to begin thinking seriously about protecting your lawn for winter. When it comes to lawn care, an ounce of prevention really does equal a pound of manicure. Getting on top of your lawn maintenance now will help your lawn bounce back from winter easily, and save you a lot of toiling.

Start by cutting off dead growth from trees and plants to ward off insects looking for winter shelter. Avoid doing too much pruning beyond that in the fall, since it promotes new growth, which would probably suffer during the winter. It’s better to let your plants go naturally dormant during this time. Wrap small trees and shrubs in mesh wire to protect them from animals and the elements. Finally, find a sunny spot indoors for your potted plants and move them to their new home for the winter.

It’s important to keep in mind that you don’t need to shut your garden down completely just because winter is coming; you only need to protect those plants that don’t thrive during this season. There are many plants that can grow through light frosts, such as carrots, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, turnips, and Swiss chard.

Covering the soil in your garden beds after the first frost will help to prevent rodents from nesting there, or worse, finding their way into warmer corners in your home! Also, remember to store your hoses in the shed, and turn off the water source to outdoor spouts. Now you’re ready to enter your winter hibernation phase with peace of mind that your lawn and garden will be just fine out there!