Landscaping Tips For Every Season

Spring is almost here, and many of us will be excited about getting into the garden. Here are some landscaping tips for every season to help get you started!

By Diane Small

Picture stepping into the crisp spring morning air of a blossoming garden. Fast-forward to a restful summer afternoon of sipping tea in the shade of a leafy oak. Now, imagine tranquil autumn nights spent near a flickering fire pit, embraced by lively foliage. Finally, envision an enchanting winter scene embellished with shimmering lights and icy evergreen trees.

This, my friend, is the enchantment that lies within landscaping throughout every season! It entails the artistry of designing an outdoor area that seamlessly adapts to the passing of time.

Correct landscaping can provide an everlasting display of magnificence, and a harmonious link to nature’s ever-evolving masterpieces.

But comprehending the fluctuations in seasons is crucial to maintaining a flourishing garden.

Wondering how you can do so? Here are a few landscaping tips for every season.

How To Make Your Garden Lovely Throughout The Seasons

Spring

During the spring season, nature comes alive with an explosion of vibrant colours. This period is also an ideal opportunity to demonstrate care for your lawn and existing plants through our first of our landscaping tips for every season: aeration.

The process of aeration basically helps to relax dense soil. This allows plants’ roots to receive air, water, and essential nutrients. It’s necessary because buildup of thatch and foot traffic from family and pets can cause lawn soil to become compacted. As the soil becomes compacted, it loses more and more space to hold oxygen. Without oxygen, the plant’s vascular systems are not able to function properly, and their roots are unable to absorb water.

Microbes and organisms that live in the soil also need oxygen to survive. When soil compaction is an issue in the lawn, lawn care technicians recommend aerating the lawn. Soil aeration is usually done either with a plug aerator or a spike aerator. A plug aerator removes actually cylindrical plugs from the soil. A spike aerator pokes holes in the soil with a spike. Most lawn professionals recommend using plug aeration because piercing the soil with spikes may cause more soil compaction.

Spring is also time to:

Dethatch. This eliminates the layer of deceased grass and thatch, which may hinder growth.

Improve grass. By over seeding areas with bare patches using new grass seed, one can ensure a vibrant and verdant lawn during the summer season.
Create compost, a natural supplement to your garden. Add kitchen food scraps, yard debris, and a few other select materials. This practice will not only decrease landfill waste, but also offer a natural fertiliser for your plants.
Mulch garden beds. Add a 2- to 3-inch layer of mulch—such as wood chips, shredded bark, or leaves—to your garden beds. This will help keep the soil moist, reduce weed growth, and maintain a consistent soil temperature.

Summer

In summer, the sun is strong and temperatures surge. So our one of our landscaping tips for this season is to prioritise landscaping that is resilient to drought conditions.

It’s easy to do so! Just choose plants that are efficient in their water use. This is known as drought-tolerant landscaping.

There’s a common misconception that desert-loving plants are the only choice in water-wise gardening. But that’s not true! Consider adding certain perennials, succulents, ground covers, and even prairie grasses. In addition, most varieties of lavender, yarrow, Russian sage, blue fescue, and switchgrass are water-wise plants. It also helps to have shade trees such as maples or oaks, or pergolas or gazebos. These can all add shade to your plants in summer.

In summer, it’s also time to weed! This helps to stop undesired plants from vying for essential resources such as water and nutrients with your desired flowers and shrubs.

Summer is also time to:

Trim your plants. This fosters robust development, stimulates blooming, and aids in retaining the preferred form of your plants.

Fertilise. But don’t rely on chemical fertilisers. Supplying your plants with a well-balanced amount of nutrients during their periods of vigorous growth can greatly enhance their well-being and aesthetic appeal. Whenever feasible, choose organic fertilisers.
Mow the grass. Keeping a regular mowing schedule not only enhances the tidy appearance of your yard but also stimulates the development of denser, more robust grass.
Manage pests. In summer, pest management is essential. Insects thrive in this weather, and can prey on your plants. Avoid using toxic, harmful chemical pesticides and use natural solutions instead. No matter what pests you may be facing, believe me – there is a natural solution! Check these out, for example.

Autumn

As the summer season wanes, it’s time to engage in tidying and readiness measures for the approaching colder months.

Eliminate withered blossoms, lifeless leaves, and any litter from your garden plots so as to impede the proliferation of diseases and simplify your spring cleaning endeavours.

If you anticipate an early freeze, it is advisable to safeguard delicate plants by employing burlap or row covers.

Of course, it’s also time to harvest any fall fruits and vegetables you may have planted in summer. These include apples, pumpkins and pears.

Winter

Landscaping tips for every season apply to winter, too!

Consider incorporating evergreen plants such as pines, spruces, and holly to provide year-round structure and vibrant shades against the winter landscape. Even during the colder months, specific flowers such as pansies and witch hazel contribute an additional element of floral charm.

Many trees and shrubs have berries they hold onto throughout the fall and winter. Thse can provide food for birds overwintering in your area. Crabapples hold their fruits, and a holly bush with berries is also really beautiful in winter.

Incorporating wintry ornaments such as shimmering fairy lights, pinecones, and evergreen branches arranged along fences can infuse a sense of holiday joy.

Bird feeders can also serve as a focal point, drawing in winged companions and bringing vibrancy to the wintertime scenery.

Now that you know all these landscaping tips for every season, you can start to make your dream garden a reality! Not sure you can do it on your own? Simply get in contact with skilled landscape contractors to make your ideas a reality!

Author
Recent Posts

Diane Small

A University of Texas journalism graduate and serious chocolate enthusiast, Diane was a sub-editor at the Houston Chronicle before falling pregnant. Today, she is the proud mom of two kids under the age of three, and freelances for Eluxe in between nappy changes and feedings.