How to Take Care of Your Landscapes and Hardscapes During Winter

Maintaining your landscaping and hardscaping in the winter is tricky, but it doesn’t have to be. When it’s winter, your landscapes and hardscapes become increasingly vulnerable to the weather’s harshness. However, with proactive care and maintenance, you can prevent the possibility of having to deal with heaved plants and wind-torn foliage.

Taking preventive and remedial action beforehand will ensure that your outdoor area thrives throughout the cold season. Here are a few steps you can take.

1. Keep Snow, Leaves, and Debris Out

Leaving a huge amount of snowfall on your landscaping and hardscaping in the winter can gravely impact your trees and shrubs. But simple activities like brushing off the snow can help reduce the burden on them.

Of course, you need to do this gently – you don’t want to end up hurting or breaking the foliage. If the snow has already frozen over your plants, it’s better to leave them as they are. You can’t brush off the ice, but you can break branches with ice on them by trying.

If you’ve ever wondered why you can’t let fallen leaves turn into fertilizer, there’s a good reason. The leaves and debris will allow the formation of mold and mildew before it decomposes. To prevent this, you should clean your outdoor area ahead of time to prepare for the winter months. 

2. Trim, Rake, and Aerate Your Lawn

Before the winter sets in, cut your grass shorter to prepare it to survive the cold weather. Leave about 2-to-2.5 inches to protect its growth and keep pests away.

Make sure that the leaves left behind from the fall season are raked and removed. Dead leaves and debris can suffocate your lawn and prevent fresh growth.

Good landscape care in the winter involves a constant supply of nutrients that last until spring. Aerating your lawn will allow the roots to get adequate oxygen, water, and fertilizer. For best results, do this in advance while the grass is still green.

3. Protect Trees, Plants, and Shrubs

Applying mulch may seem like a small task, but can go a long way in protecting your landscaping projects in the winter. Adding a thick layer (around 3-4 inches) around your trees and plant roots can provide extra protection against water loss and erosion, while enabling a consistent soil temperature.

No doubt, protecting your landscaping projects in the winter can be difficult as the snow and moist soil can hurt the health of your plants. To help your plants, you’ll need to wrap delicate plants and shrubs with the right material to give them a fighting chance against the chill.

Burlap is a good choice as it’s breathable. In general, avoid dark-colored materials and plastic as these can retain too much heat and moisture, which can potentially ruin your yard’s landscaping and hardscaping in the winter.

4. Control Weed Growth

Proper landscape care in the winter also entails timely weed removal. Prevention during the winter is a great way to control and even prevent weed growth in the spring.

Crabgrass, henbit, and common chickweed, for example, can survive freezing temperatures, and take over your yard if left unchecked. They’ll start sprouting as soon as the ice begins to thaw.

To remedy this, simply hand-pull the weeds as and when you spot them. This will help ensure the best preventative care for your yard’s landscaping and hardscaping in the winter.

5. Winter Pruning Is a Must

Pruning can make a big difference to your landscaping in the winter. In fact, roses and fruit trees do particularly well when they’re pruned in the dormant phase. Ideally, they should be pruned before they break the bud in spring.

Well-timed pruning can also help you eliminate crossing branches and thinning the branches so they don’t become too heavy with fruit during the summer and eventually, break.

6. Clean and Seal Natural Stone

If your hardscape pavers are made of natural stone, you’ll need to take extra care of them in the wet and cold seasons and seal them in advance. Use a sealant to stop the deterioration of pavers and concrete from ice, UV rays, and general wear.

Avoid using rock salt in your yard’s landscaping in the winter as it can dry out and weaken any hardscape you have. 

Cleaning and sealing natural stone will help preserve its overall quality and colors while increasing its longevity.

7. Water Regularly for Landscape Care in Winter

Don’t forget to water your soil as part of your landscape care in the winter. While you need not do so regularly in the cold season, you still need to ensure that your soil has adequate levels of moisture to support your foliage. Just because the weather is humid and cold, does not mean your plants are getting water. Even if your plants are dormant, their roots will need moisture.

Make sure you use cold water, however, as sudden changes in the soil temperature can adversely affect the roots, ultimately damaging the plant.

8. Use a Patio-Friendly Shovel

Metal snow shovels may be popular, but some aren’t the best choice during the winter. They can damage the surface of your outdoor patio. So, if you’re planning to clear your outdoor area in the snow season, head over to your landscape material supplier and get yourself the best possible plastic shovel or one that has rubber edges.

9. Protect from Animals

Protecting your landscaping in the winter from animals should be high on your list of priorities. Some animals, especially deer, have no trouble tearing through plant coverings to get to the leaves and buds. So, if you live in an area frequented by animals, consider fencing them off for the best results.

10. Store Accessories Indoors

It’ll help to move certain hardscape items and accessories, such as statues and moveable show pieces, from the outdoors inside before it starts snowing. After all, landscaping and hardscaping in the winter need all the care you can give to keep them from getting damaged by freezing temperatures or excessive moisture.

11. Add Lights

Keeping your yard well-lit during the dark winter evenings and nights can help ensure you and your family members don’t slip and fall and sustain injuries on your hardscape elements.

Choose lights that are both functional and match your aesthetic to provide a gorgeous and glowing pathway that guides people to your home.

12. Limit Foot Traffic

It can be extremely tempting to walk on the lawn when the grass is short and brown. However, excessive foot traffic can compromise the health of your landscaping in the winter. What’s more? The cold weather will slow down its recovery.

To ensure the good health of your landscaping and hardscaping in the winter, avoid using it as a parking lot for vehicles, and avoid walking on the grass.

13. Buy Only from Professional Landscape Material Suppliers

Not everyone knows how to keep their landscaping and hardscaping thriving through the frost season. Also, many people don’t have the time to care for their outdoor area to prepare it to last until spring. But, using quality landscaping and hardscaping supplies and tools can make it easy for you to perform certain important tasks on your own.

Whether it is for spring clean-up or sprucing up your hardscaping, the best time to plan your purchases is when winter is still setting in. This way, you’ll get ample time to work out the logistics, get the necessary permits, and find high-quality supplies. You’ll be able to ensure that your property looks its best all year round.

Pioneer Is the Landscape Material Supplier You Can Trust for All Your Yard Needs

Ignoring your landscaping and hardscaping in the winter can mean dealing with a lot of unpleasant surprises in the subsequent spring. Instead of enjoying the warm weather, you’ll have to spend time straightening up your outdoor space.

Don’t let this happen to you. Call our professionals and get yourself the best yard supplies in the market. If you’re looking for high-quality landscaping and hardscaping supplies, Pioneer can get you the products you want, delivered where and when you need them, with seamless customer experience. That's the Pioneer Difference. Get in touch with us today.