Ottawa Landscaping is a year round commitment with different requirements that change with the seasons. In order for your garden to thrive it takes special knowledge of what work is required in the spring and what is required to prepare your garden for the winter. Here are some tips to prepare your garden for the winter ahead:
- Raking: Most gardeners are avid rakers and keep their lawns and gardens leaf free. However it is a good idea to save those leaves and spread them over your garden beds. They will protect the soil throughout the winter and also provide nutrient rich food that will attract worms and keep soil rich and healthy. The worms will also turn the leaves into a hearty, natural fertilizer.
- Plantings: Plants have different times of year that they must be planted. There are a number of plants that are ideal for fall planting including:
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Bulbous Asiatic and Oriental lilies can be planted in the fall for lovely colour throughout your garden in the spring and summer.
- Icicle pansies can be planted in the areas you use for summer annuals to protect the soil as well as to offer a lovely touch of colour well into December. They will also bloom again in the spring.
- Annual seeds can often bloom in the spring and summer when sowed in the fall including larkspur, poppies, cleome and cosmos.
- Nothing adds more flavour to your home cooking than garlic fresh from the garden. Plant garlic in a sunny area and use manure to encourage growth come spring.
- Evergreen trees and shrubs will pump water throughout the winter and will require a good watering until the ground begins to freeze.
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- Separating: Large growth of perennials such as phlox, hostas, daylilies, Michaelmas daisies, obedient plants and Siberian irises should be separated and replanted in the fall. Use a knife for difficult, tangled roots and then transplant the smaller clumps directly into their new home in garden beds.
- Mulching: Plants that are planted in the fall can use a good spreading of mulch. Wait until after the freeze-up and then apply a thick mulch of leaves and evergreen cuttings. You will allow the root balls to remain protected from common heaving of the soil during the frost.
Ottawa landscaping takes a lot of work and know how to keep your garden looking good come the spring.
