Is Your Lawn Up to Code?
Want your landscape to thrive over winter?
Our weather is hard on outdoor plants. Plants struggle when weather swings from weeks of rain to severe drought to hard freezes during winter. Losing plants is expensive!
What can you do to help your plants?
To minimize loses and keep your landscape looking great, always be prepared:
- Keep your soil moist year-round. Plants will be stronger if you water them through the winter. Our soil does not freeze deeply; therefore, it is important to continue watering during winter because plant and tree roots grow more in cool weather, between the months of November to February. Trees and plants that start winter stressed out from the summer heat and drought, from insufficient irrigation, are also less likely to survive winter if not well watered. Moreover, any time you stop watering, our clay soil moves and will very likely damage your house foundation over the years.
- Before a freeze water everything, trees, shrubs, perennials, sod, groundcover, annuals, and planters. Moist soil is warmer than dry soil and will help keep your plants from dehydrating.
- Keep a 2” layer of mulch year-sound. Mulch helps hold moisture and keeps soil temperature warmer in the winter (cooler in the summer) protecting your plants.
- Plant native plants. Native plants, being well adapted to our region’s extreme weather patterns, are more likely to survive. The best time to plant shrubs and trees in our region is early in the fall, or between November and February. This period allows the transplants the longest time to grow strong roots prior to the hot weather.
Learn more about freeze damage: https://www.usbg.gov/blog/frostbitten-flora-what-happens-plant-cells-when-it-freezes
Learn more about protecting your plants: https://dallascountymastergardeners.org/freeze-warning-protect-your-plants/
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