Getting your lawn and landscape in order before the first frost can be overwhelming, but if done right, can be so rewarding come spring! So before you put away your shears and trowel for the season, here are some Fall preparations you can take to make Spring a whole lot prettier:
1.) Dig it up. Before the first frost (see estimated date of first killing frost in Wisconsin here), dig up annuals that have turned brown and may be overgrown or leggy. To add color in their place, import a couple of hardy mums, which generally only last until late Fall even though they are considered a perennial. These can be “sunk” into your annual’s place in gardening pots that can easily be removed in spring.
2.) Plant some bulbs. Add a little spring color to your landscape in places that are otherwise late bloomers. There’s nothing like that early blast of color from crocus, daffodils and tulips – especially when they can even peek out from a light blanket of Wisconsin snow! Daffodils are especially nice because they are rodent-proof due to a special chemical found inside of them. Plant them in a nice, sunny, drained location for best results. According to Sharon Morrisey, Consumer Horticulture Agent, Milwaukee County UW-Extension, bulbs can be planted through November. Morrisey also recommends that tulips be replanted every two years or so as flowering may not be very hardy after that.
3.) Think trees. Add some color – and shade protection – near your house. Trees are a great way to add height and interest to a landscape, and can even provide homeowners with increased property value and savings on their energy bills of up to 30% according to WE Energies! Fall is the second-best time to transplant trees, according to Melinda Meyers’ Month-by-Month Gardening in Wisconsin book, but Meyers cautions homeowners to “wait until the leaves drop and the trees are dormant.” Though many varieties of trees can be planted through October, Meyers has a list of some to avoid planting in fall due to slow root growth including: red maple, birch trees, hawthorn, honey locust, tulip trees, magnolias, black gum, poplar, ornamental “prunus” trees, Callery pear, oaks, willows and linden trees. Evergreens can still be planted but should be complete by early October, according to Meyers.
Bob Freid, owner of The Landscape Company in Oshkosh, says now is a great time to buy and plant trees, explaining that a surplus of trees exists today because they were planted prior to the new construction housing market decline. And that surplus means low prices for homeowners. Low prices aside, though, the other reason to invest in trees, says Freid, is the potential for a tree shortage soon – and therefore, rising prices.
“There’s a tree shortage coming,” he warns. “Growers stopped growing them when the housing market slumped. We’re going to get into a time where they’re going to be very expensive very soon.”
Homeowners wanting to take advantage of low prices and end-of-year stock can plant trees from October 1st right up until Christmas, Freid says. “Fall is a good time because you have a longer period than in spring.” He recommends balled and burlapped trees with trunks that are 1 ½ inches to 4 inches in diameter to avoid having to pay for more expensive tree spading for planting. Which trees are great to plant right now? “Autumn blaze maple is a hot tree – fast-growing, nice color,” he recommends. “Elms are nice, especially hybrid varieties that are resistant to the Dutch-elm disease. Ornamentals, like crabs, are ok to plant, too.”
The most important thing that homeowners can do to ensure their Fall-planted trees survive into next year is to go into winter with soil that is moist, whether existing or new, Freid says. “Everything is extremely dry right now – put your finger in the ground near your tree, and if it’s wet, don’t water; if it’s dry, water it.” Trees should also probably be staked leading into the winter months. “But don’t fertilize or encourage growth right now,” Freid advises. “Everything is getting ready to sleep right now.”
4.) Sit back and enjoy the color! The best part of the Fall season is the ever-changing colors, appearing like fire on the treetops until the leaves make their way to a resting spot on soon-to-be frozen ground. Until then, though, sit back and enjoy the show throughout the state. Plan a weekend road trip to some of Wisconsin’s most colorful areas which can be found on this map throughout peak season.
Bob Freid has been the owner of the Landscape Company since 1987. The Landscape Company is located at 708 Nicolet Avenue in Oshkosh, and features a small nursery/greenhouse with fall retail hours, and Christmas trees and décor every November/December.
