PREPARING YOUR YARD FOR WINTER

by Jan Cashman

    We get lots of questions about how to get your trees and shrubs ready for winter.  And with our harsh winters, it is important to take a few steps to avoid winter injury on your plants.

Lawns: We continue to water our lawn in the fall to keep it green.  During a warm, dry fall, the grass will turn brown and go dormant early if you stop watering it. 

     Although you should not fertilize trees and shrubs in the fall, we recommend that you fertilize your grass now with a fertilizer that is lower in nitrogen (the first number on the fertilizer bag) and higher in phosphorus (the second number).  The 16-20-0-14 we carry is good.  There is no potassium (the third number in this analysis) because potassium is plentiful in our soils.  The forth number is sulphur which will help release the iron in our alkaline soils.                                     .

     Mow your grass short as we enter winter because tunneling voles prefer tall grass.  And shorter grass will discourage snow mold from forming under the snow.

Fruit Trees:  You may not have picked your late season apples, such as haralson, haralred, mcintosh, and red baron.  We leave these late varieties on the tree as long as possible, but they must be picked if the temperature is going to dip below 26 degrees because the fruit will freeze. 

     Apple trees, especially young ones, should be protected from deer.  Deer will rub them with their horns, damaging the bark, and also eat the twigs.  There are many deer repellants available and some home remedies such as hanging net bags of human hair in the trees.  However, we have found that the best way to keep deer away from your trees is to fence them. 

     The trunks of fruit trees should be wrapped to protect from sunscald --the sun blisters the bark on the sunny side of the trunk.  Wrapping will also protect the trunk from voles who burrow under the snow and gnaw on the bark of young fruit trees. 

Trees:  We recommend watering your trees less in late summer so they harden off (go dormant) for winter.  Once the trees have dropped their leaves and are dormant-- around November 1-- water them deeply.  Their roots will overwinter better in wet ground than in dry. 

     Before winter, wrap the trunks of smooth-barked trees such as maples, mountain ash, and fruit trees up to the bottom branch to prevent sunscald.  You can use purchased tree wrap or cardboard held on with ducktape works too. We like white plastic tree protectors that can be reused and will also protect from both sun and from voles gnawing on the bark.  Push the tree protectors down into the soil so none of the lower trunk is exposed for rodents to gnaw on. 

    Fall is not the time to prune trees with the exception of maples and birch which will “bleed” from the pruning wounds if pruned in the spring. 

Evergreens: Evergreen trees should also receive a deep watering around the beginning of November before the ground freezes.  Pines, spruce and fir trees can “winterburn” from the sun refelecting off the snow and the wind drying out the needles (called winter descication).  Some of the more tender varieties of evergreens include dwarf Alberta spruce, yews, and pyramidal arborvitaes.  These tender evergreens do better when planted on a north exposure or in a spot where they will not receive direct sun in the winter.  Or protect them by blocking the winter sun and wind with a shade made of fabric stretched between 2 poles.  (Do not wrap the trees tightly.)There is also a spray-on antidescicant called ‘Wiltpruf’.