As fall arrives in Calgary, preparing your yard for the winter months is crucial. The city’s unique climate—with early frosts, dry conditions, and sudden snowfalls—requires a strategic approach to yard maintenance. Proper fall yard cleanup helps protect your lawn, trees, and garden from the harsh winter, ensuring everything bounces back strong and healthy in the spring. At Evergreen LTD, we specialize in year-round tree and yard care, making sure your property is ready for whatever Calgary’s climate throws its way.
Here’s a comprehensive guide to getting your yard winter-ready.
1. Rake and Remove Fallen Leaves
Why It’s Important: Calgary’s fall leaves drop quickly due to cold temperatures, and letting them sit on your lawn can suffocate your grass. Leaves block sunlight and trap moisture, promoting mold growth and damaging your lawn over winter.
How Evergreen LTD Helps: We offer seasonal leaf cleanup services to keep your yard healthy. We can rake and remove fallen leaves on a schedule that suits your yard’s needs, ensuring your grass gets the air and sunlight it requires.
Tip: Aim to remove leaves weekly during peak leaf fall.
2. Mow the Lawn One Last Time
Why It’s Important: Mowing your lawn in the fall prepares it for dormancy. Keeping your grass at about 2 to 2.5 inches prevents it from matting under snow while also protecting it from Calgary’s cold temperatures.
How Evergreen LTD Helps: We include lawn mowing services in our fall cleanup service through the fall season, cutting your lawn to the perfect height to resist snow mold and ensure springtime regrowth.
Tip: Mow your lawn until it stops growing, usually by late October.
3. Aerate Your Lawn for Better Health
Why It’s Important: Aerating loosens compact soil, allowing water, nutrients, and air to reach grass roots. In Calgary, with its clay-heavy soil, aeration is crucial for preparing lawns for winter’s freeze-thaw cycles.
How Evergreen LTD Helps: We offer professional lawn aeration, ensuring your lawn can absorb the moisture and nutrients it needs to survive the cold months.
Tip: Aerate your lawn in early to mid-fall when the soil is still moist but not frozen.
4. Fertilize for Winter Strength
Why It’s Important: Fall is the perfect time to fertilize because it strengthens your lawn’s roots, helping it survive Calgary’s cold winters and encouraging healthy growth in the spring.
How Evergreen LTD Helps: Our team uses slow-release, high-potassium fertilizers tailored for Calgary’s soil conditions, giving your lawn the nutrients it needs.
Tip: Apply fertilizer after aerating and at least two to three weeks before the first hard frost.
5. Prune Trees and Shrubs
Why It’s Important: Pruning removes dead or damaged branches that could break under Calgary’s heavy snow, protecting your trees and property. It also promotes healthier growth for the next season.
How Evergreen LTD Helps: Our ISA Certified Arborists provide expert tree pruning services to remove dead, damaged, or crossing branches, ensuring your trees and shrubs are ready to weather the winter safely.
Tip: Focus on species like birch, aspen, and spruce, which benefit from targeted pruning.
6. Winterize Your Flower Beds and Gardens
Why It’s Important: Preparing your garden for winter helps insulate roots, retain moisture, and prevent damage from Calgary’s freeze-thaw cycles.
How Evergreen LTD Helps: We can help with mulching and cutting back perennials, ensuring your garden is properly insulated and protected for winter.
Tip: Add a 2-3 inch layer of mulch around plants and trim dead foliage, leaving some growth for root protection.
7. Clean Gutters and Downspouts
Why It’s Important: Clogged gutters and downspouts can lead to ice dams and water damage when snow melts. Cleaning them out before the first snow is essential.
How Evergreen LTD Helps: While we don't offer gutter cleaning services, ensuring your gutters and downspouts are clear and ready to handle the snow and melting that comes with Calgary winters. Ask us for a referral to a great company who can help you with this!
Tip: Clean gutters in late October or early November once most leaves have fallen.
8. Water Your Yard Before Winter
Why It’s Important: Even though Calgary has a dry climate, your lawn, trees, and shrubs need adequate water before winter sets in. Watering deeply ensures that your plants are hydrated enough to survive dormancy.
How Evergreen LTD Helps: We provide watering advice to make sure your yard is adequately hydrated going into winter, especially for new trees and shrubs.
Tip: Aim for 1-2 inches of water per week and consider watering during winter chinooks when the ground isn’t frozen.
9. Protect Sensitive Plants from Calgary's Harsh Winter
Why It’s Important: Calgary’s cold winds and snow can damage sensitive shrubs and evergreens. Protecting them ensures they come back strong in the spring.
How Evergreen LTD Helps: We offer plant protection planning and advice, including wrapping sensitive plants in burlap and adding extra mulch to insulate roots.
Tip: Wrap vulnerable plants before heavy snow and frost hit.
10. Perform a Final Yard Inspection
Why It’s Important: Before winter, it’s important to check that your yard is fully prepped for the cold months. Inspect for any missed debris, make sure plants are properly mulched, and store tools securely.
How Evergreen LTD Helps: Our team can conduct a final inspection, ensuring your yard is fully winterized and prepared for the months ahead.
Tip: Don’t forget to store away garden tools and equipment after your final cleanup.
Conclusion
A comprehensive fall yard cleanup is essential for preparing your Calgary property for the winter months. By following these steps—raking leaves, mowing, aerating, pruning, mulching, watering, and protecting your sensitive plants—you can ensure your yard stays healthy and vibrant through the winter and into spring. At Evergreen LTD, we offer expert services to help you with every aspect of your fall cleanup, ensuring your yard is winter-ready.
Ready for Fall Yard Cleanup? Contact Evergreen LTD Today!
Whether you need help with pruning, aerating, or full yard maintenance, Evergreen LTD has you covered. Contact us to schedule your fall yard cleanup and ensure your property is fully prepared for Calgary’s winter.
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