Cold storage
A guide to getting your yard ready for winter
Put down your rake and get out your hose. It's almost time to put your yard, shrubbery and garden to bed for the winter. As harsh as the winters can be in the Capital Region, it's easy to doubt if our plants will survive to bloom another year. Two things you can do to help your grass come back and your shrubs survive: keep watering and resist the urge to remove the fallen leaves from your property.
"You should not pick up leaves, but you should chew them up," says Bob Graves, co-owner of Faddegon's Nursery. "Leaves are the most valuable compost you can get. Go over them a few times with your lawnmower. If you have a big maple and a heavy layer of leaves, put them into a compost pile, but it's a waste to bag them and send them off."
Graves is also concerned homeowners will stop watering their lawns and shrubbery because the weather is cooler. We had a dry summer, and
plants are more likely to survive if they go into the winter hydrated.
Give the grass one last cut — a short one — before winter, and leave the clippings.
Next, shrubs. Generally speaking, fall is not the time for pruning, Graves advises. Pruning should be done right after the shrub flowers. For example, forsythia is a spring bloomer, and after it's done flowering for the year, the plant produces the buds for the next year. If you wait too long after the shrub stops flowering, you will be cutting off the blooms.
It's OK to cut back long branches that might be in the way of a mower or walkway, but pruning encourages growth, and you don't want new growth just before killing cold sets in.
Amy Howanski, an associate horticulturist at Faddegon's explained it's important to prune correctly — use a handheld pruning shears, not hedge trimmers — and look for what is called the "crotch angle," where one branch meets another. Make your cut right before it, going from the tip of the branch toward the trunk.
Any evergreen shrub that will be subject to significant snow load (such as what comes off a roof ) should have shelter, says Gregg Redick, co-founder of Redbud Development, a landscape design company in Wilton.
"Evergreens have more surface area for snow to collect on and therefore the snow can damage or destroy branches. Holly, yews, rhododendrons are some examples of shrubs that we would recommend using a wooden shrub guard; such as the upright triangle or sandwich sign style boards made of wood or some other strong material," Redick says.
Next, trees. Fall is a good time to plant trees because it's cooler and rainier so the new roots get a good amount of water.
No matter what time of year it is, Redick says to incorporate compost and root stimulating fertilizers into the hole while you're planting.
"By creating small earthen rings at the base of trees, we ensure that when watering trees, the water actually gets to the roots rather than washing away from plant roots," he says. "We also do not rely solely on automatic irrigation systems to water all plants; we teach to our clients how to monitor their plants so they also can determine if the plants are getting enough or too much water. If we are planting in the late fall we will typically apply an antidessicant (protective coating) to help plants survive overwinter."
Trees and shrubs also present an opportunity for fallen leaves.
"Most people apply mulch for aesthetics, but in horticulture it’s used to insulate the soil," says Graves. "Snow is an insulator and protector. When we don't have snow, the freeze and thaw is bad for perennials. Spent leaves are good insulation. Not all plants will be hurt by temp fluctuation, always check with an expert."