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Consumer Guides

Winter Yardwork

Yardwork is usually the last thing on the minds of most homeowners in the dead of winter. But this is actually the ideal time to renovate the lawn and eliminate the brown spots and crab grass left over from last summer.

A: A lawn renovation starts with a thorough raking to open the ground and expose the soil so new seeds can germinate. Next, level the lawn by covering the lowest areas with new soil. Then, reseed the entire lawn if necessary, or simply patch certain areas as required. To ensure germination, add a good fertilizer and cover the seeds with humus to protect them from hungry birds. Then wait about three or four weeks for the seeds to pop.

An advantage to doing this in the winter is that nature provides enough water to germinate the seeds, whereas it is necessary to sprinkle the areas during other times of the year.

A: At this time your grass is full of millions of crab grass seeds waiting to sprout in the spring. Therefore, you want to be ready to spray with a pre-emergent about the last week of February, just before the temperature starts to warm up.

A: No, for several reasons. First of all, you cannot apply pre-emergent yourself because it is a hazardous chemical which by law must be applied by licensed professionals. Secondly, pre-emergent would kill new seeds that you plant now, so it would be counter-productive if you are renovating your lawn.

Finally, the chemicals would not be as effective as possible in the cold weather. It is simply better to wait until just before the weather warms up.

A: Absolutely, and don’t forget about pruning your roses, too.  In order to improve the production of both fruit trees and rose bushes, you must prune before they start to bud, in the following professional manner:

1. Clean from the inside out, removing crossing branches.

2. Thin branches so they will not become too heavy with fruit. Quality is more important than quantity.

3. Don’t forget to spray your fruit trees with dormant oil. You should have already applied dormant spray at Thanksgiving and Christmas, and the third application should come after pruning.

A: Of course, now is a great time to clean out the flower beds, removing the fallen leaves and blossoms to avoid potential fungus and molds from growing.

You should also cut back overgrown bushes and trim non-fruit trees before they start to grow again.

Plant bare-root trees and roses before spring arrives. Now is when you will get the very best prices possible on new trees and bushes for your landscape.

Finally, winter is the ideal time to contact a landscape contractor about updating, remodeling, or totally reinstalling your yard. Homeowners typically wait until spring to make their initial calls, only to find that most quality landscapers are busy and even scheduled ahead by March. Plan ahead to get your best service and prices of the year.