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Your business, your HOA community, or your residential home deserves to look well-maintained throughout the year, no matter the season. Regular, year-round maintenance, will make the difference. Whether you’re a do it yourself type or prefer to let someone else do the heavy lifting, following a seasonal schedule of care – and doing the right things at the right time – is the secret to healthy lawns and thriving landscapes. The University of Florida Horticultural Guide for Okaloosa County provides monthly recommendations for year-round maintenance for your business, HOA community and personal home. Want to know when to plant annuals, bulbs, shrubs, and trees? UF has a helpful North Florida Gardening Calendar that can help you better understand when the best time to plant is and how to care for differnt plants by month.
Here’s our seasonal guide that we use and one that can help you get through the year as well.
WINTER (January-Mid February)
Start planning! January is a great time to plan your yard, garden, and landscape projects for the year and decide what falls under DIY and what you want to hire out. You’ll want to schedule any landscape contractors or yard service early – before they get busy in the spring!
Test your soil before spring. Soil pH governs how available nutrients are to all plants, including vegetables and herbs, flowering plants, turf grass and trees and bushes. Your county extension office has information and soil test kits to help you with this. Call 850-689-5850. Or you can buy a kit and do this yourself or have a pro come and test your soil for you. The advantage of hiring a pro, like the team at Landscaping Plus is that we can offer guidance as to what your lawn or garden is lacking and how to properly amend your soil before the growing season kicks in. A good rule of thumb for lawns: healthy lawns should be tested every three to four years, and problem spots tested annually.
Prune trees and shrubs while they’re dormant. You can also prune established fruit trees and berries this time of year. Be sure to remove any diseased or damaged branches. If you’re not sure of how to prune, consult with a professional first, or simply hire us. There’s nothing worse than a bad haircut and this is true for trees and shrubs too – they take even longer to grow out!
Monitor landscape turf weekly for problem areas. It is not necessary to mow the lawn when it is dormant. However you can mulch the leaves on the lawn by mowing, as needed. The leaves should be kept to a minimum on the lawn to avoid blockage of sunlight. Keep the mowers on a high setting. It is never a good idea to scalp the lawn!
Prevent weeds before they sprout! Late winter is a great time to get a jump on any sprouting weeds before they can get a foothold in your yard. We recommend spreading 2-4 inches of organic mulch to keep weeds from germinating.
Cut back ornamental grasses to just a few inches above the ground to tidy up your winter landscape and make way for new spring growth.
SPRING (Late February-April):
Firm up your big projects now. Confirm your contractors and get on their schedules early – especially if you want to enjoy your new landscape, deck or patio by summer.
Test your irrigation system and schedule any repairs that may be necessary. If you are planning on installing a new system, don’t wait! Early spring is a great time to do this, while the ground is still soft.
Make note of any overly soggy sections of your lawn. Poor drainage is a common reason why lawns begin to look bad, but there are a multitude of options for improving drainage and reviving your lawn to its rightful lush state. This is a service we have been providing Emerald Coast homeowners for years, so if you are not sure what to do, give us a call.
It is best to wait until the grass has completely greened up in the spring before applying any fertilizer. Fertilizing too early (before green up) can result in turf injury and leaching of fertilizer nutrients.
Apply pre-emergent herbicides to prevent unwanted grasses and weeds before they can germinate.
Start mowing your lawn at the first signs of growth. If you have a regular maintenance service, make sure you are on the schedule to get this started up again and if you have been mowing your own lawn, maybe this is the year to consider hiring out. There are lots of additional services your landscape maintenance crew can provide to keep your lawn and yard healthy and looking its best year-round. Water lawns in the early mornings between 4:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m. to help prevent disease problems. Apply fertilizer around April 15, after the grass has completely greened up and has been cut at least twice. Do not apply more than ½ pound of water-soluble nitrogen per 1000 square feet at any one time. If using a fertilizer that has at least 50% of the nitrogen in slow-release form, up to 1 pound of nitrogen per 100 square feet may be applied.
Plant trees and shrubs in spring while the weather is still cool. The ground will be softer, and your new plantings will have time to get better established before the hot and drier days of summer. New plantings need more water than established plants.
Fertilize ornamental shrubs and small trees with a good general purpose landscape fertilizer (15-0-15), in which at least 30% of its nitrogen is slow release. Fertilize azaleas, camellias, and gardenias using special azalea/camellia type fertilizer for acid loving plants.
Fertilize mature palms with a special palm fertilizer that has an 8-2-12+4Mg (magnesium) with micronutrients formulation. Apply one pound of fertilizer per 100 sq. ft. of canopy area.
Finish pruning summer flowering deciduous shrubs and trees, such as abelias, altheas, hibiscus, oak leaf hydrangeas, oleanders, and crape myrtles, as they bloom on the current season’s
growth and pruning may enhance flowering.
Apply a layer of mulch around plants once the soil is warm to discourage weeds and help retain moisture when drier weather returns.
Prune vines growing over arbors and trellises in the spring. This is something that tends to get overlooked and before you know it, your overgrown vines are taking down what was once a beautiful feature in your yard.
Schedule a complete yard clean-up! If the spring checklist is a bit too much for your busy schedule, hire a crew to come out and give your yard and landscape a spring tune-up. We recommend spring and fall clean-ups to keep your yard fresh and looking it’s best through the seasons.
Maintain your hardscapes. Clean wooden decks and re-seal or stain as needed; repair cracks in paved areas, lubricate or replace rusty latches and hinges, refresh gravel pathways, and repair any broken outdoor lighting fixtures. Do it now and you will be able to simply enjoy your outdoor spaces when the warm weather of summer returns.
SUMMER (May-August):
Plan your fall projects now! It’s not too late to think about adding special features or new plantings, or even giving your landscape a complete makeover. If you’ve been dreaming about a re-do, then contact your landscape designer and get on their fall schedule now.
Keep your lawn hydrated, but not too much! Make sure your lawn is getting an inch of water a week – including rainfall. The tendency is to over water, which can lead to all sorts of problems. So, to keep your lawn healthy and thriving, keep your watering in check.
Keep an eye on any new plantings from spring. These may be more susceptible to heat and drought and may need more water until they are established.
Trim hedges after the first wave of new growth and prune spring-blooming shrubs after the flowers fade.
Treat your lawn for destructive turf pests.
Aerate compacted soil and de-thatch your lawn as summer winds down or in the early weeks of fall. This will help with drainage and the overall health of your lawn through the rainy season. You can rent equipment, add this to your regularly scheduled yard maintenance, or hire a crew just for that job. We offer a full range of services like this for busy homeowners like you.
FALL (September – November):
Fall is a great time to start new hardscapes – patios, decks, retaining walls, walkways. Your contractor can help you schedule everything out.
Even though temperatures are still warm, begin planting for the cooler months ahead. Digitalis (foxglove), petunia, and shasta daisy are good plants for the fall garden. Divide crowded perennials such as ajuga, daylilies, liriope and mondo. There are many daffodils that are suitable for Florida. Fragrant varieties include ‘Carlton’, ‘Fortune’, ‘Silver Chimes’, ‘Thallia’, and ‘Sweetness’.
For pre-emergence control of winter annual weeds such as annual bluegrass (Poa annua), apply an herbicide when nighttime temperatures drop to 55ºF–60ºF for several consecutive days.
Continue mowing and providing general care, including irrigation. Avoid the application of fertilizer as this could encourage new growth that would result in winter damage.
“Over-seeding” is sometimes used to provide a green winter turf cover using ryegrass. It is best to wait to over seed when the daytime temperatures are consistently in the low- to mid- 70⁰ range. Rake and mow the grass before applying the seed. After applying the seed, water should be applied lightly and carefully once or twice a day until the seeds have germinated. Once the grass is well established, water on an as-needed basis.
Plant trees and shrubs in the fall, as our relatively mild winters allow for root growth and they will be well on their way to having their roots established before hot weather arrives. Water well. Mulch. If you are adding larger shrubs or trees, consider hiring a pro so that you can be sure your holes are big enough, heavy root balls are treated with care and your new plants are properly watered and fertilized to get them off to the best start. Water newly planted shrubs or trees frequently until they are well established. Small shrubs take about 3 months to become established and larger shrubs or trees about 6 months to a year.
Do NOT prune trees and shrubs unless it is absolutely necessary. Pruning can stimulate new tender growth, which may be damaged by low winter temperatures.
Monitor for insects/pests. Make an application of horticultural oil on shrubs and woody ornamentals, IF scales, mites, and other plant sucking insects have been a problem.
Keep mowing your lawn until the grass stops growing.
Don’t let the leaves and pine needles pile up! Rake fallen leaves and any other yard debris regularly! Unraked yard debris can suffocate grass and also provide a rich breeding ground for pests. Of course, if you have a regular crew coming out from Landscaping Plus, you won’t need to worry about this – we’ve got you covered!
Schedule a fall clean-up. If you haven’t been having regular yard service, schedule a crew to give your yard and landscape one final clean-up for the season to remove old and dead plants, prune weak or diseased branches, and tidy up your landscape. Not only will your yard look fresher throughout the winter months, but you also minimize the risk of falling limbs during winter storms, and you will be one step ahead come next spring!
Drain irrigation systems and shut them down for the winter. If you have water features, you may want to drain these as well before freezing temperatures may hit. Consult with your landscape professional if you’re not sure how to winterize your irrigation system or water features. We get questions like this all the time and are happy to consult.
Need help with your landscape maintenance?
Contact Landscaping Plus today by giving Jay a call at 850-803-6540 or by emailing us via the ‘How Can We Help’ form below.