As the snow begins to melt and the temperatures start to rise, it’s time to start thinking about how you want your yard to look this spring. If you’re looking for some inspiration, check out these Minnesota landscaping tips:
1. Add color with flowers and plants. There are a variety of flowers and plants that can add color to your yard in the springtime. Try tulips, daffodils, crocuses, or grape hyacinths for a pop of color.
2. Add some trees or shrubs. If you’re looking for some shade or privacy, adding trees or shrubs can be a great way to do that. Choose plants that are native to Minnesota for the best results.
3. Freshen up your yard with a new coat of paint. If your fence or deck is looking a little worse for wear, give it a fresh coat of paint to brighten things up.
4. Add some accessories. A few well-placed accessories can enhance your yard. Try a garden bench, birdfeeder, or wind chime to add some personality.
5. Keep things tidy. It’s important to keep your yard clean and well-maintained, even in the springtime. Make sure you rake up any leaves or debris, trim the grass, and weed the flower beds.
With these tips in mind, you’re sure to have a beautiful yard this spring!
Did you know that there are many benefits to planting native Minnesota plants in your yard? Some of these benefits include improving pollination, creating a natural habitat for local wildlife, and reducing the need for watering and fertilizing. Here’s why you should consider adding native Minnesotan plants to your yard.
Improve Pollination
One of the biggest benefits of planting native plants is that they improve pollination. Many native plants have long flowering seasons, and they provide food and habitat for bees and other pollinators. This helps to ensure that plants produce fruit and vegetables, and it also helps to support the local ecosystem.
Provides Habitats for local fauna
Another benefit of using native plants is that they provide a natural habitat for local wildlife. For example, Minnesota’s native trees and shrubs offer shelter and food for birds, rabbits, and other small animals. This can help to reduce the need for supplemental feeding or shelter in your yard.
Reduce watering and fertilizing
Finally, planting native plants can help to reduce the need for watering and fertilizing. This is because many native plants are well adapted to the climate and soil of Minnesota, and they don’t require as much care as non-native plants. By using native plants in your yard, you can save time and money on gardening chores.
So, if you’re looking for ways to make your yard more sustainable, consider planting native Minnesota plants. Not only will you be helping the environment, but you’ll also enjoy beautiful and healthy plants that require little maintenance.
As the snow melts, it’s time to prepare for the busy spring gardening season. Here are some tips to follow before spring is fully upon us.
Mulching
One of the key things to do in the garden during winter is mulching. Mulching helps to protect plants from harsh weather conditions and keeps the soil from freezing. It is important to use organic mulch, such as leaves, straw, or wood chips, to prevent the soil from becoming compacted. Another important task to complete in winter is to prune trees and shrubs. This will help them to grow healthy and strong in the spring. Pruning should be done right after the leaves fall from the trees, as this will make it easier to see which branches need to be cut.
Compost Your Soil
In addition to the tasks mentioned above, other things can be done in winter to help prepare the garden for the spring. One is to add compost to the soil. Compost helps to improve the structure of the soil, while also adding nutrients that help plants to grow. Another is to cover any flower beds with a layer of straw. This will help to keep the soil from freezing and protect the plants from the weather.
Clean Up Your Flower Beds
When the weather starts to warm up in the spring, you should remove straw and other debris from your flower beds. This will allow the soil to warm up and start to grow. Once the soil is warm, it is time to start planting. The best time to plant flowers and vegetables is early in the morning or evening when the temperatures are cooler.
By preparing the garden in winter, gardeners can ensure that they will have a beautiful landscape to enjoy in the spring. Contact us today to learn more about our services and how we can help you prepare your garden for the spring.
Winter tree pruning is done during the dormant season. This means some trees will be dormant during winter, while some trees will be dormant in spring. If you’re not sure what winter tree pruning is, here are the winter tree pruning basics.
Winter tree pruning is a winter lawn care task that helps you maintain beautiful trees and shrubs in the winter and the coming spring season.
Why You Should Prune in the Winter
There are many reasons winter tree pruning is good for your trees and shrubs. First, winter pruning cuts away winter damage. This winter lawn care task is important if you want your trees to remain healthy and beautiful during winter.
Tree Pruning Can Reduce Winter Hazards
Before winter, you can remove any broken branches that have not healed themselves from winter damage. By tree pruning, winter lawn care can help reduce winter hazards that could lead to lawn damage.
You Will Stimulate Growth
During winter, you can prune away winter damage that has already occurred. Winter lawn care and tree pruning can prevent diseases and insect problems from occurring when the weather begins to warm up.
Pruning your trees in the winter is a smart landscaping task because you can identify where you should cut, which means you are less likely to damage fruits, flowers, and buds. This also puts less stress on the plants/ Your trees and shrubs will thank you!
While many of us are still trying to beat the summer heat, it will soon be time to consider preparing for fall. Here are some tips you can follow to ensure your lawn and yard are ready for the cooler months.
Lawn Care Tips
You should always try to improve your grass cutting techniques throughout the year. Make sure your mower’s setting is set too high. How you cut and treat your lawn will be important even for the dormant, cold months. You should also consider mulching your grass as well, as it can help keep the grass hydrated longer. As lawn care professionals that create and maintain beautiful, lush lawns, we wanted to give some tips on how to help your lawn and trees beat the summer heat and prepare it for cooler months. Here are some of our best tips from the lawn and tree care professionals themselves.
Shrub and Tree Care Tips
Make sure your trees and shrubs are being adequately watered. The trick is to water them slowly, over time. You should also consider pruning your trees as well. Remove dead branches to avoid them from hurting your trees or shrubs. Cold and wet weather is more common in the fall time, which means the wind can be a risk for your tree with bundled, dead branches.
Your yard’s lawn and trees should be cared for throughout the year. As summer winds down, there are many things you can do to protect your yard for the colder months.
Whether you are experiencing a drought, or there is a municipal ordinance on water usage, chances are your lawn is in desperate need of water. A lush green lawn is a sight to behold, but for many Minnesotan residents, it is only but a dream. Maintaining your lawn requires a lot of water, however, many factors can prevent a homeowner from having a thriving lawn.
No matter where you live, conserving water is something we should all take part in, especially when it comes to our lawns. If you are concerned about your water usage and want your lawn to look as best as it can, follow these three steps on how you can conserve your water usage in the summer.
Give the Lawn Proper Nutrition
Your grass needs a constant supply of nutrients to balance its growth. A well-fed lawn will grow much deeper roots, which means it can absorb water and nutrients much more efficiently. In addition, with the proper nutrients, your grass will likely be more resistant to stress and diseases.
Cut Your Grass Correctly
Not many homeowners know that there is an art to mowing the lawn. Make sure to always change the direction of how you mow, as constant movements in the same directions can cause too much stress for the grass. If you can customize your lawnmower’s settings, aim for a 3-4 inch cut.
Watering Techniques
Mother nature can usually do the job of watering for you, but unfortunately, many times during the Summer we are ravaged by weeks of droughts. If you plan on watering your lawn, make sure to install smart watering devices. These can use plant, soil, and weather data to accurately water your lawn the most efficiently. This can cut down on overwatering, which will conserve water.
Every summer in Minnesota can have unpredictable weather. It could be rainy all week, but then suddenly, the rain hasn’t come in almost a month. Many states are subjected to periods of dry weather, especially in the summertime. During a drought, your yard will surely show that it is suffering, so many homeowners are wondering, what can they do to help their landscape survive during this tough time?
While it may seem hopeless, there are some steps you can take to save your lawn during a drought. Here are some tips.
Monitor the Weather
While the lawn grass is experiencing stress from the harsh drought, it is still growing. You will notice areas that are browning and thinning. The excess heat and lack of water are what prevent the grass from storing carbohydrates. Watering regularly can help keep the grass a bit healthy, and once the rain comes, it will bounce right back.
Over Fertilizing is a No-no
Spreading fertilizer on your grass during a drought may cause more harm than good. Over-fertilizing could end up burning the grass. The focus is to have your grass absorb water during the drought, not trying to fertilize it.
Forget Watering Cool-Season Grass
This sounds counterintuitive, but for cool-season grass, it is natural for them to go dry during the dry and warm seasons. Watering will be virtually useless. Breaking their dormant cycle can drain the reserves, which means the plant may not bounce back once their season comes.
Water Frequently
Unless your city has a water ordinance in effect, you should make sure that you are watering it enough to keep it alive. Warm-season grass has peak growth in the hot weather, so making sure it is hydrated is essential.
Weeds can be extremely problematic for your garden. Not only do they hinder the appearance, but they can also prevent your garden from flourishing and growing. Getting rid of weeds can also be a difficult task, especially if you want to avoid harming your other plants. Here are some natural weed removal remedies that you should follow.
Use a Gardening Tarp
Tarps are an excellent and natural way to prevent weeds from accumulating in your garden. If you want to have a clean area to work in, a tarp is the best option. Make sure the tarp is waterproof and that there is no way light can make its way through the tarp. This will prevent weeds from growing, as they are plants that need water and light to survive.
Laying a tarp where you want to garden can kill current weeds within weeks. This means you don’t have to worry about harming your other plants. In areas where you’ve already planted your garden, cut holes in the tarp and pull your plants through. This way, your plants will get the light they need.
Vinegar Can Be An Effective Weed-Killer
Vinegar can be a great natural way to prevent weed growth in your garden, especially if your plants have waxy leaves. Vinegar will roll off the leaves and into the dearth. This can be destructive plants with immature roots, so it is best used in a garden that already has large plants growing.
Boiling Water
Boiling water can be a great way to remove weeds, but it can be potentially dangerous to your plants. Try your best to avoid pouring over the plants you want to keep. Boiling water is also an effective way to kill weeds that grow in between rocks and stone.
It’s the middle of winter, and temperatures are plummeting below zero. This is common for a Minnesota winter, after all. However, as a homeowner, you probably wonder how the animals and plants can survive this unbearable cold? Many animals hibernate underground or fly south during the winter because their food sources are scarce. Vegetation, such as leaves and flowers, don’t exist. But how is it that these plants can spring up next season, despite the unlivable conditions?
Trees And Shrubs Become Dormant
As the cold sets and the sun shines less, plants will begin to “harden. The water is pumped out of their plant cells and into the roots or sap. It is a sugar solution that acts as an antifreeze for the plant. For example, oak and maple trees shed their leaves every fall to reduce water loss. Evergreen trees have their needles to protect from water loss. Plants are also able to modify their life cycles with the changing seasons and can readapt to temperature changes.
Some Plants Are Incredibly Durable
While they shed their leaves, trees and shrubs do not die. Herbaceous plants that live for two or more years also act similarly to trees and shrubs, these plants are known as perennials. For the rest of winter, these plants store their energy in their roots. Wildflowers live off the food they store and sprout once the weather begins to warm up.
Some Plants Rely On Their Seeds
Not all plants work in the same way as trees and shrubs do. Some plants can only survive during their growing season, dying around fall time. While the plant may die, they make many seeds that will sprout in time for Spring. These are annual plants. The roots of these plants die, but their seeds will endure. Many seeds rely on the cold weather for germination, but you may need to purchase new seeds if the temperature is too extreme in your area.
Just like animals and humans, plants have developed ways to adapt to the cold weather. From small flowers to towering trees, plants are magnificent in their ability to withstand some of the harshest conditions.