After the robust growth of spring and summer, with the added heaps of leaves in fall, there is a lot to clear out of the yard during the harvest season. Fall landscape maintenance prepares your yard for the long sleep of winter, and gives your plants a head start in spring. Wet, dead plant material attracts mold and suffocates whatever plant life it is sitting on. To prevent anything you want living from dying, you will want to remove all obstructions throughout the fall season.
October Fall Landscape Maintenance To-Dos
By our first hard freeze, you will want to have taken out your annuals and removed all plant debris and leaves in your beds. When allowed to build up on a lawn or mat down around planting beds, leaves can smother everything under them, especially evergreen shrubs. Leaves are likely not the only plant debris in your yard that needs to go. Any dead material should be removed to help keep your lawn and plants breathing free.
During your final mowing weeks, mow the grass a little shorter than you do in the summer, especially if your lawn has had fungal issues. We recommend cutting grass to 2 ½ – 3 inches. Shorter grass stands stiffer and straighter, and will not flatten under the weight of snow. It is also harder for debris to get caught in short grass; leaves will blow across it, leaving you with less work.
November Fall Landscape Maintenance To-Dos
November is the time for final maintenance. You can fertilize and prune during this month, but be sure to research or consult a professional before doing either! Laying down a mild, low-nitrogen fertilizer will promote root growth when plants fall asleep for the winter. It’s like putting your plants to bed with a snack; they will sleep well and wake up happy and ready for spring. November through March is when you can perform some dormant pruning, but you do not want to prune every plant because you could be removing your spring flowers! Make sure you consult a professional before pruning.
Our best advice for you may be this last tip: if you want to bring in a professional to help you with your fall maintenance, make sure to schedule these services at least a month out before you need them! Give the Eagleson Landscape Team a call at (317)997-4803 or send us an email for any of your fall landscape maintenance needs.
Eagleson Landscape Company provides landscape and hardscape services in the Greater Indianapolis area, including Carmel, Zionsville, Westfield, Fishers and Geist.
