DECEMBER LANDSCAPE TIPS

It's early winter, and holiday goodies are sitting heavy on your stomach. Are you wondering how to get up enough energy to get out and find some fresh air, maybe even burn off some of that stored up energy you consumed at the dinner table? Here a few tips to keep you busy on the off hours after work. Don't try to do them all in one day, but look at it as a guide for possible projects.

• Piedmont Winter Yard Care
• Cold Sensitive Plant Protection
• Winter Transplanting Trees and Shrubs
• Garden Equipment Maintenance and Repair
• Soil sample if not yet done
• Apply to Master Gardener Program
• Plan Ahead for Spring & Summer: Order from Plant & Seed Catalogs!

Piedmont Winter Lawn Care

Remove all lawn debris (rocks, sticks and leaves). Mow your lawn, if you have fescue, at 3 inches. If clippings are building up on the lawn, rake them up and compost them. If the clippings are not building up, then allow them to filter into the lawn (this is grasscycling). Do not fertilize this late in the season. However, if we go for more than 3 weeks without rain, remember to water your lawn.

Remove those "weedy" trees or other plants that have come up in your landscape, but hold off on your shrub pruning just a little longer. Many of the shrubs grown in the landscape can be safely pruned in mid to late February, just keep an eye on the temperatures. Also, prune spring flowering plants just as the blooms are fading in the spring. Pruning now will prevent them from flowering.

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Cold Sensitive Plant Protection

Some garden plants are more easily injured by low winter temperatures and winds. Cover your strawberry plants or other tender plants in the garden with pine needles or wheat/barley straw to protect them during the months of December and January. Do not use tree leaves, which tend to matt down on top of the plants and may cause mold problems in the spring. Plan to remove the mulch when daffodils bloom. back to top of the page

Winter Transplanting of Trees and Shrubs

Continue transplanting trees and shrubs into the landscape. Water the rootball to settle the root systems with the surrounding soil, reducing potential for dry out of the roots. Also, water if dry periods of 3 weeks or more occur. Evergreen plants will lose water from the plant faster in most cases than deciduous plants, so keep a close eye on evergreens. back to top of the page

Soil Samples

There's no excuse for nutrient deficiencies in well landscaped areas. Contact your local garden center for the soil boxes, take soil samples of your garden and send them off to the NCDA Soil Testing Lab. This is an easy way to determine nutrient needs of your soil. Pay close attention to the soil report you will receive 4 weeks after sending your sample to the NCDA Soil Lab in Raleigh. The most ideal time of year to soil sample is in November, because by February you will have the report in your hands and know exactly what to do when it needs doing. back to top of the page

Garden Equipment Maintenance

Check out your garden equipment, and make the repairs now. A lot of yard jobs are easier if tools are well-maintained. Sharpen pruning shears, hoes, and shovels. Check the lawn mower, weed eater, and rototiller for loose or broken parts. Drain gas from small engines to prevent fouling the carburator. If your mower needs to go to the shop for repairs, now is a great time since small engine repair shops are not usually as busy as they will be in the spring. back to top of the page

http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/gaston/