By: Dave Zeldon and Ely Schweyer with tips from Mary K, Zach C, Sandy M, and Jeanine LT!
Now is the time to prep our outdoor landscapes for the coming cold weather and the ensuing spring! Perhaps your autumn is calmer than your spring, and this is the best time to clean up and begin new projects. The following are some simple but effective tips to get your yard winter-ready - so your spring will be a little more pleasant for you!
Planting
When warm weather still allows it, plant trees, shrubs, perennials, and bulbs to allow them to establish for budding and blooming next spring.
Pond Care
Mary, our perennials gal, suggests not removing any water from your pond but instead aerating it all winter. She skims out the leaves to maintain the balance of the nitrogen cycle in the water and suggests waiting to do a big pond clean out in the spring, as that’s when the water’s culture can bounce back easier.
Fertilizing
After top growth of your landscape plants ceases, reduce your annual fertilizer application by up to half of the requirement. Autumn is a major root growth period for woody and herbaceous perennials; roots will grow and absorb nutrients whenever soil temperatures remain above 5 °C but can be over fertilized quickly in these cooling temperatures.
Produce gardens could benefit at this time from a top layer of compost that will break down during the winter so it isn't too 'hot' for spring planting.
Leaf Litter
Here’s our pitch on the ‘leave it – don’t leave it’ debate: It DEPENDS.
Ideally, we should leave litter leaf on the ground for our pollinator friends and endangered species like fireflies to hide out in the winter. But, there are appropriate situations in which to remove leaf litter.
- When they’re covering your bulbs and tender perennials, remove SOME. Leaf litter acts as a ground insulant, which can amplify our temperamental zone 6b temperatures. This freezing and thawing can often confuse and kill early spring bulbs and tender perennials.
- Zach, our trees and shrubs guy, suggests that if a tree shedding leaves has been diagnosed with pests and fungi, remove the leaf matter to reduce the spread to other plants. Diseased matter should always be removed in a quarantined fashion and taken to a landfill or burned.
☝️Please note: Unless diseased, compost your leaves, they contain vital nutrients specific to the plants they came from!
Lawncare
With autumn mowing practices you have the opportunity for the addition of much needed organic matter for your lawn, which is also an excellent source of slow release nutrients. Keep mower blades sharp since leaves can be tougher than grass. Raise the mower height up and mow leaves when they are lightly wet (e.g., morning dew). This will keep the leaves from blowing all over and will prevent the mower from getting bogged down in wet leaves.
See more on general lawncare in Dave's Lawncare 101 post.
Clean Up
Now is a good time to wash your tools with soap and water to prevent diseases spreading from plant to plant.
☝️Mary's tip is to spray garden tools with PAM before use, so the dirt slides right off them!
Pruning Perennials
Mary, our perennials gal, suggests leaving things until frost to cut back. This way they're easier to compost. Make sure to leave seedheads (i.e., coneflowers and black-eyed Susans) for wildlife, and things like hydrangeas for winter interest.
☝️Make sure if things are cut back, to leave them sticking up enough you can still find them in the spring!
Dividing and Moving Perennials
Moving or dividing perennials in the autumn is a great way to reduce your work next spring. The cool, moist weather is an ideal time for perennial roots to become well established.
👍The rule of green thumb for moving perennials: If the plant blooms between early spring and late June, then early fall division/moving is ideal. If the plant blooms after late June, then early spring division is ideal (except for Peonies which should only moved or divided in the fall, Poppies in August, Irises in July & Lilies in the Fall).
Overwintering Trees
Zach and Sandy from trees and shrubs suggest a couple of things to help your favourite trees along this winter:
- To reduce winter injury in evergreens: Keep properly watered throughout the growing season and into the fall is another way to reduce winter injury. Decrease watering slightly in September to encourage hardening off, then water thoroughly in October until freeze-up.
- Cedars - Spray cedars with antidesiccant spray (available at Eising GC) or wrap in burlap (with stakes to create dead air space) so wind doesn't dry out and burn tips.
- Fruit trees - In late fall, spray fruit trees with sulfur-horticultural oil (available at Eising GC) for protection against fungi and pests overwintering in the bark.
- Ornamental trees - wrap the base of young trees to protect from chewing rodents.
- Pruning trees - trees that prefer winter pruning rather than spring pruning are maples, oaks, birches, and elms, as well as with fruiting trees such as apples and pears. This ensures blight and pests will not affect the tree's open wounds.
If you missed the frosty deadline for transplanting trees, Sandy suggests insulating unplanted potted trees to help them best survive the coming winter. Here are some methods:
- Double-pot your tree with an insulative barrier (i.e., burlap, straw, mulch, etc.) stuffed between the two pots and securely cover the top with tarp to deflect moisture.
- Bury your potted tree in the ground, level with the top of the pot (don’t forget to dig it back up!) and mulch the area.
- Huddle all of your unplanted trees and plants together when using the above methods.
Mulching
Mulching is one of the simplest and most beneficial practices you can do for your garden. Just by simply placing a protective layer of material over the bare soil will benefit the soil as it decomposes providing the much-needed organic matter which improves root growth, the infiltration of water and the nutrient-holding capacity of the soil while reducing soil erosion.
A good layer of mulch allows the soil to warm more slowly in the spring, so perennials aren't fooled into breaking dormancy too early, as you want the ground to stay cold until it really is spring!
☝️Make sure your mulch application won't stunt the growth of your plants come spring as discussed in our Transplant Troubleshooting blog post!
Japanese Beetle Prevention
Nematodes are microscopic worms that should be applied to lawns that have been ravaged by grubs especially of the Japanese Beetle. Nematodes have a short shelf life and must be refrigerated until they are applied. Normally, they are sprayed onto the lawn from mid-May to mid-June and then again (for best practice) from mid-August to mid-September.
Pots
To prevent freezing and cracking, Mary suggests emptying and turning your pots upside down. You can disinfect at this time too.
Design Time!
Jeanine, from production, suggests writing down what worked best in your produce garden this year so you can implement it again in the spring.
With the trees and land being barren enough you can see its contour, now is a great time to plan ahead for spring landscaping! Don't forget Eising GC would love to offer help with your landscape designing!
We hope these tips help your landscape plants enjoy your winter abode as much as you do this season, for more information - and plants – visit Eising Greenhouse and Garden Centre! 🍁
While many gardeners in Southern Ontario follow the popular planting date of May 24th, when we’re usually safe from frost, you may be surprised to know that April is not too early for certain plants!
Once the ground has thawed and is workable, there’s plenty you can start growing. In Zones 6a-6b, this usually happens around four weeks before May 24th. While frost is still a possibility, many cold-tolerant plants not only survive a light frost but thrive in cooler weather. To check if the soil is ready, simply dig up a handful and squeeze it. If it sticks together, it’s too wet to work with—wait a few more days for it to dry out. Once the soil is ready, it’s time to plant those cool-weather crops!
Cool Weather Vegetables
Radishes: Radishes are fast-growing and perfect for planting in April because they love cooler weather. Sow them directly from seed.
Peas: April is the perfect time to plant peas outdoors as soon as the soil is workable. Soak pea seeds in water for 8-10 hours before planting them to help germination.
Lettuce, Spinach, Arugula, Asian Greens (Tatsoi, Mizuna, Pak Choi and Leaf Mustard) : It’s best to sow seeds for leafy greens or plant seedlings early in the spring as they will grow quickly in cool weather. Plant more seeds or seedlings every 10-14 days for a succession of greens until hotter temperatures make them bolt (go to seed) and become bitter.
Potatoes: Seed potatoes can be planted in mid to late April as soon as the soil is workable.
Onions: Plant onion sets or seedlings that have already been started in early spring and enjoy a harvest in late summer or fall.
Carrots: Plant carrot seeds in April, and they will be ready for harvest later in the spring or early summer. They take a little longer to grow, but planting early gives you a head start. You will enjoy carrots all summer long by planting more seeds a few weeks later.
Tip: It’s a good idea to keep some frost protection like row cover handy for lettuce, peas and spinach just in case the temperatures dip below zero.
Bonus: Many garden pests, like earwigs and slugs, are still overwintering in April and won’t feast on your tender plants.
Cold-Tolerant Flowers
Pansies: Add a pot of Pansies to cheer up a front porch, and it instantly feels like spring! Plants can go into a sunny spot in the ground when temperatures reach 7-21 celsius and are regularly staying above freezing.
Violas: These cool-weather flowers can withstand light frosts and are perfect for containers or for planting in garden beds
Gladiolas: Even though the weather is still cool, this resilient summer-blooming bulb can be planted in a sunny area of the garden in April.
Bonus: Pansies and Violas also love cool weather in the fall.
Perennials, Trees and Shrubs
Two to three weeks before the threat of frost has passed, many potted perennials, shrubs and trees, either dormant or with leaves, can be planted. (If you’re not purchasing from us, be sure to check whether the plants were grown outdoors or acclimated to cooler temperatures and ensure they’re hardy enough for Southern Ontario.)
While perennials, trees, and shrubs can be planted throughout spring, summer, or fall, the combination of warming soil and increased rainfall in spring creates the perfect conditions for successful transplanting.
Come into Eising Garden Centre to see the many seeds and plants available for you to add to your garden in April!
Additional Resource: Landscape Ontario provides an excellent online Tree Planting Guide.