Last week,
this blog talked about Fall cleaning your home. This week, it’s all about Fall
cleaning your yard and garden! Last fall, we talked a little bit about yard prep to
help give you the best yard possible for spring, so check that post out for
even more tips!
In the
fall, it’s a great time to take care of a few things in your garden. By this
time, most of your plants have stopped producing leaves and flowers. This is a
great time to move them or break them up, as they’re going to be growing a
bigger root structure at this point in the growth cycle. If you move them, make
sure there’s some fresh topsoil or compost but don’t use fertilizer. Moved now,
they will have two months of root growth before the dormant period.
To keep
weeds out of the garden, dig an air trench, which is a V-shaped cut used to
keep grasses out of garden soil. Here is a great explanation: “Briefly, with a
sharp, square-ended spade, slice into your lawn about two centimeters back from
the edge of the garden, shoving the blade in deep, then leaning back on the
handle to free a thin slice of grassy soil. Leave the slice in place, but
reinsert the spade next to it to extend the cut. When you've gone a few meters,
or the whole way along the edge of the bed, return to where you started and
gently lift the soil slice away -- or as much of it as contains roots -- taking
out any stolons or rhizomes reaching into the bed, too, as you go.”
Now is also
as good a time as any to clean and put away all of the outdoor furniture, toys,
games, etc. Cleaning and repairing things now will be a time saver come spring
when you want to play! Check your gutters for fallen leaves constantly to
prevent clogging and rainwater backing up into the roof. And as for the leaves
that fall on your lawn, make sure you rake them up and bag them. Leaving them
on the lawn can create thatch and other problems come spring time.
