The end of the 2013 CT landscaping season is here. Below are some tips to prepare your home and landscape for winter.
In the Landscape
- Cut back perennials to prevent the overwintering of insects and disease. Cut most perennials to the ground. Some perennials, such as coral bells, should not. It’s better to post a question below than to cut prematurely.
- Cut ornamental grasses 3-6 inches from the ground either now or in late winter. Here in CT I cut ornamental grasses in the fall, they tend to get beat up and look ratty through the winter.
- If you have tree hydrangeas (Hydrangea paniculata) it’s OK to prune them once the leaves fall off. Tree hydrangeas flower on the current seasons growth. They will bloom next year if pruned this winter. If you have bigleaf hydrangeas (Hydrangea macrophylla) only cut spent flowers to clean up the shrub, otherwise you’ll be removing next years blooms.
Household Maintenance
- Turn off the valves to your hoses on the inside of the house and then open the valves on the outside to drain water. Once the water drains close them again to prevent accidentally running water all winter if someone turns the wrong valve. Disconnect and roll up your hoses on a warm day to flush all water from them. Bring hoses indoors for longest life. You can keep them coiled, without water inside, outside your home or in the shed or garage over the winter. If you use the hose over the winter disconnect it and remove all water before coiling it up again.
- Is your snow blower tuned up and ready to go? Do you need to replace any snow shovels before they are all gone?
- Have you called the oil company about your winter tune-up?
Might I Recommend
- Winter is a great time to prune deciduous trees and shrubs in CT landscapes. If your landscape needs pruning call today!
- Now is the time to begin planning your landscape design if you are thinking about landscaping next year. Spring comes fast. Now is the time to start the design.
- Need firewood? We have a limited supply available so don’t wait to call.
If you have any questions about your CT Landscape please post them below.
By John Holden
Comments
2 responses to “CT Landscaping Tips – December 2013”
Hi John,
I have a question on whether it is a good ides or not to use mulch in my landscape around the house. Our house has wood siding and we have beds around the house that we plan on mulching, I read somewhere that we should not use for several feet near foundations and wooden structures. My question is it okay to use mulch if our house has wood siding and the beds are next to the foundation?
Thanks
A
You never want to apply mulch touching wood siding. If you have wood siding you need to install a drip edge to prevent the mulch from touching it. When mulch touches wood it stays damp all the time and will rot. Mulch touching wood is also an open invitation to insects.
MOST of the time installing mulch next to a house is ok.
However, some people have trouble with artillery fungus. It grows where the mulch stays damp all the time in the shade. If your gardens have these conditions near the house I would not recommend using mulch. If you have concerns contact your local agricultural experiment station and ask them about he artillery fungus.
I have never had artillery fungus on a job I mulched where the siding was ruined and had to be replaced. It is common to see some black dots on siding from artillery fungus spores.
In the end do your research and keep an eye out.