"The falling leaves, drift by my window…..
…… the Autumn leaves of red and gold”.* Yikes! There are falling leaves! They are wild and beautiful in the wind. The stuff of poetry and song! If only they would land neatly in waiting trash bags! The whole whirling, twirling, spinning, drifting thing means they can pretty much land anywhere! Willy and nilly and all that jazz and at some point that means raking. It’s not the same as when we were kids and we’d build up a huge pile and leap into it. The leaves actually have to be disposed of in some manner. (Plus the leap would probably kill me! ) My cat loves to watch the leaves flying past the window. He periodically forgets about the glass and tries to snag one. He does this with snowflakes, too. Perhaps this repeated banging into glass explains a lot about him!
I digress… there are two things that must be done in the fall in Colorado. One is to take a drive into the mountains and enjoy the foliage. Those New Englanders have nothing on us! The other thing is to winterize your lawn and garden. Work and play. Good and bad. Yin and Yang. You get my drift – pun intended.
The first step in lawn winterization is to clear away all debris. Most of this can be added to your compost heap which will come in handy in the spring. All kidding aside, it is very important to remove all the leaves from your lawn. The grass underneath needs all the light it can get and adequate moisture needs to reach the living grass and plants.
Fall is the time to plant spring-blooming bulbs such as tulips and daffodils.
Pull up any annual flowers or vegetables that have fallen victim to frost. These can also be added to the compost heap.
Cut back any perennials with ragged or unsightly foliage. Pull any weeds. This will prevent weeds from getting a head start in the spring.
Dig up the tender bulbs like gladiolus, dahlias and other summer-blooming bulbs. They won’t survive the winter. Bulbs can be stored in vermiculite in a paper bag in a cool, dry spot.
Water evergreens and small trees and shrubs if the weather is dry.
Apply mulch to perennials. Uses a lightweight, organic mulch. Compact, heavier mulches may suffocate plants.
Protect broad-leaved evergreens such as rhododendrons and holly with an antidesiccant spray. This prevents them from drying out in the winter winds.
Drain your mower and any other gas powered lawn equipment. Clean and store all tools.
Last, but not least, think how happy you will be come Spring!
Please don’t forget to check out our services directory. Get a professional to take care of all of your winterization needs!
*The original music was written by Joseph Kosma and the lyrics by Jaques Prevert. The English lyrics were written by Johnny Mercer. Many artists have performed this song over the years, but Eva Cassidy does an incredible version. Check it out, if you haven’t already.
