Backpack…check, school supplies…check, landscaping list…wait, what? As we are planning for Back-to-School season many of us are thinking about what the school year will bring, and which restrictions will still be in place due to COVID-19 variant concerns. Our time is filled with our already busy schedules, on top of back-to-school routines, and we sometimes struggle to find time to keep up with our landscape maintenance.
We’ve compiled a simple checklist to help you out:
- If you have a grass lawn, get it Fall ready – Fall is the best time to seed the bare spots in your lawn and have it lush by next spring (now that’s some planning)
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- Remove any debris
- Loosen the soil
- Add seed and fertilizer
- Water it well
- Keep mowing the rest of the lawn, moving to the lowest setting toward the end of the season so it absorbs moisture and nutrients it needs
- Remove fallen leaves – Can you believe the leaves are already close to falling? Get your rake ready and keep on top of the leaves. If leaves pile up, they can damage your lawn due to moisture and mildew.
- Create a schedule
- Rake weekly and you can keep up on this task and save time in the long run.
- Give your landscape a makeover – Fall is a great time to redesign. You can plan for any changes that you weren’t able to get done this year and get everything planted before winter hits the ground. While winters are milder here in the San Joaquin valley we still need to be prepared for the change.
- Make a list of ‘wants’
- Prep and plant
- Plant your Spring bulbs – Hard to think we already thinking about next Spring, but now is the time to get those bulbs in the ground before winter and ready for next Spring.
- Pick your bulbs
- Get them planted
- Reorganize or create outdoor living areas – We talked about this recently as more people are using outdoor spaces. ( http://rainscapeco.com/maximize-your-living-space-with-an-outdoor-living-area/) Moving into Fall doesn’t mean that we must pack up all our Spring and Summer outdoor furniture. You can adapt and adjust your outdoor living rooms and areas to suit your needs.
- Make a redesign plan (we would be happy to help with that)
- Move or replace furniture as needed
- Update outdoor décor and décor pillows
- Enhance your landscape with Fall displays – Get your landscape Fall ready by creating fun and impressive Fall displays to dress up your landscape.
- Incorporate pumpkins, gourds, hay, crates, corn, apple baskets and more into festive and fun displays
- Add Mums, pansies, perennials, and ornamental grasses into your landscape
- Start your seeds for Fall and Winter – In the Central Valley it is still very warm August-October so you can start your seeds outdoors in pots and containers and transplant in September/October.
- Pick your seeds – some great options are Romanesco, Cauliflower and Broccoli
- Start them in pots and containers
Keeping up on our lawn and garden maintenance will save us time and money in the long run as we avoid a buildup of work and possible waste. During this busy back-to-school season it is a good time to re-evaluate the needs of our landscape and see where we can make changes, simplify, and improve in order that our landscape maintenance doesn’t become the master of our time.
Here at Rainscape we would be happy to take a look at your landscape and help you find ways to update, improve and simplify your design, so that you can spend more time doing what you love, and less time buried in a pile of leaves.