Fall Checklist to Prepare Your Landscaping For Winter

Fall is a prime time to prepare your landscaping for the upcoming winter months. With a few key tasks, you can ensure your plants thrive and your landscape and yard look their best throughout the colder seasons.

1. Plant trees and shrubs. The cooler temperatures of fall are ideal for transplanting trees and shrubs. They will experience less stress compared to the heat of summer. Apply tree wrap to young trees to prevent winter scorch cracks, along with deer and rabbit damage. Standing next to the tree, measure the trunk’s diameter at chest height. If it’s between 1.5″ and 3″, wrap it with tree wrap available at Countryside Flower Shop, Nursery & Garden Center.

2. Harvest and store potatoes. Once potato plants have finished flowering and the foliage has died, dig up the potatoes and store them in a cool, dry place.

3. Feed your lawn. Apply a fall/winter lawn fertilizer like Jonathan Green Winter Survival Fall Lawn Food. This formula promotes root growth and stores nutrients for spring, ensuring a healthy lawn. It is ideal to use with a fall seeding.

4. Add fall color. Switch out tired annuals with beautiful fall colors. Mums, ornamental peppers, kale, and pansies revitalize containers and flower beds that have finished blooming. Don’t forget pumpkins, broom corn, and gourds. Fall is also the time to plant bulbs, such as tulips, daffodils, hyacinths, and allium. They require cool temperatures and a cold winter to bloom in spring.

5. Prepare roses and perennials for winter. Stop fertilizing roses and perennials, as they need to get ready for their winter nap, rather than push new growth. Additionally, refrain from pruning roses, perennials, and ornamental grasses. New growth encouraged by pruning may not survive the winter and can leave wounds susceptible to pests and diseases. Pruning is best done in the spring.

Need assistance? Call the experts at Countryside Flower Shop, Nursery & Garden Center at 815-459-8130.

Countryside Flower Shop, Nursery & Garden Center : 5301 E. Terra Cotta Ave (Rte 176), Crystal Lake, IL : 815.459.8130 : www.countrysideflowershop.com