Fall has officially begun and now it is time to start changing up the maintenance on your Colorado landscaping in order to preserve it’s health and beauty. Colorado is gorgeous in the Fall. Since the weather is changing and the leaves are turning, here are some great Fall landscaping tips from Lifescape Associates that will keep your Fall landscaping looking its best:
Cover Summer flowers at night.
If you are still holding on to those Summer flowers, by covering your plants at night, they can avoid the frost.
Trim brown/dead parts showing on perennials.
This helps to keep the garden looking tidy during the Fall, it will also allow the plant to continue growth and not be hindered by dead material. Be careful to trim brown stems and branches on shrubs as it may be an alive branch that has gone dormant for the winter and will hold healthy growth for the upcoming Spring.
Spread winterizing fertilizers on your lawns into October.
Winterizing fertilizers are high in Phosphorous stimulating root growth. Doing this will help greening up and having a thick healthy lawn in the Spring.
Plant more fibrous and woody plants.
More fibrous and woody foliage can stand up to certain cold temperatures and frost accumulation.
Trim grasses if you don’t want to see the golden stems.
Many people like the look of grasses and keep the golden colored stems throughout winter. Often, though, Colorado gets heavy snows that can mash down grasses. If this is the case, trim the top two-thirds of the grass leaving the base for new growth in the Spring.
Wrap newly planted soft-bark trees.
This protects the trees against sun scalding in the fall and winter. The tree wrap helps disperse the heat from the sun to all sides of the tree. Usually, wrapping the tree from the base up to the first branches is all the wrap you’ll need.
Water Fall and Winter plants.
After the irrigation system has been turned off, it is smart to water fall and winter plants, especially the broadleaf evergreens to keep them alive. Often in Colorado we get 50 and 60 degree days which can create drought for the plant potentially killing it.
Protect your irrigation systems.
Irrigation system blow-outs: typically happen in mid-October to mid-November. These protect your irrigation systems from collecting ice and creating leaks in the future. Please call Lifescape Associates at 303.831.8310 if you would like to schedule an irrigation system blow-out.