Day to Day Landscaping

As you already know, my name is Elton Adams and I love landscaping. From maintaining my lawn to growing herbs from my vegetable garden, plants and grasses are my passion. This past winter I took it upon myself to do some landscaping around my yard to prepare for spring planting. I’ll take you through the steps that I took, and which areas of my yard I chose to focus on.

First I cleaned out some debris. I swept across my lawn and picked up any fallen twigs or tree limbs that may have fallen during winter storms. These twigs are the perfect place for pests to stow, so it’s important to clean them up to prevent pests from seeking shelter in your yard. Be sure to clean out your flowers beds as well. If you have rose bushes, pay special attention to them because their foliage is known to foster disease over winter months.

The second thing I did was till my vegetable garden. While many of you may not have a till laying around, there are other things you can use that will get the job done just as well. After the final harvest, I was sure to pull out old vegetables and plants so I was able to till the entire plot. If you’re like me and you like to compost, now would be a great time to add a layer of compost to help nurture your soil for the next planting.

Not all winter cleanup comes directly from the yard. This is the perfect time of year to clean out your gutters as well, as they can drop leaves and other debris into your yard if they are not properly maintained. Be sure to check for proper drainage and to clear out any blockages with a small garden trowel. Then rinse your system with a hose to ensure it is finally working properly.

Another seasonal hack I have is to aerate my soil in the off season. Aerating helps to break up the soil which keeps water from pooling and guarantees that nutrients will reach the roots of the plants over the winter season. Think of this as using a scrub wash on your face. You are removing any blockages and ensuring the nutrients of your facial wash can reach deep into the layers of your skin, just as you are doing to your lawn. Much of the soil in Auburn, AL is very dense, so aerating yearly keeps my soil happy and healthy. A garden fork can do the job for small yards, but larger yards may require a walk-behind aerator which you can find for rent at your local hardware store.

It’s also important to feed your lawn during its off season. This is a landscaping hack that can apply to almost anyone with any size yard. You will want to be sure you are sending your yard into the off season with the nutrients it needs to survive the long, cold sleep. Adding a winter lawn fertilizer should also encourage root growth and ensure a green lawn come spring.