Grounds Maintenance Tips

GROUNDS MAINTENANCE WINTER TIPS

Firm the ground around plants lifted by frost
Dig over ground reserved for annuals next year
If your pool ices over, create a hole in the ice to allow gasses to escape
Spray your existing fruit trees when dormant and finish planting
Protect your valuable trees and shrubs in harsh weather. Plant out new trees and shrubs in containers
Protect dormant bulbous plants and autumn planted plants
Shake off and heavy falls of snow from hedges, shrubs and trees so that they are not weighed down
Complete planting of roses in finer weather if ground is dry
Clean up any dead tops of plants in your borders
Plan which seeds you want to plant for spring and dig over beds reserved for annuals
For indoor colour, bring in your flowering bulbs
Apply a nitrogenous fertiliser to fruit trees and bushes grown in grass
Cover your vegetables to promote early growth
Sharpen your cutting tools in readiness for the year ahead
Wash and clean all seed trays and pots
Dress beds for annuals with bone-meal and sow indoors half-hardy annuals
Protect your pool from ice and remove weeds from bog gardens
Cut back overgrown hedges towards the end of the February
Sow peas and beans, and start sprouting potatoes
Plant out your containers with trees or shrubs

GROUNDS MAINTENANCE TIPS READY FOR THE SUMMER

What could be more beautiful, more relaxing, more pleasurable? And much of that pleasure is derived from taking care of your pond -maintaining the balance of the ecosystem and making sure your pond fish and pondplants stay alive and healthy. This Grounds Maintenance Tips are aimed to assist you through summer.

Because water is less able to hold oxygen as its temperature increases, the cleanest of ponds may experience low oxygen levels during hot summer days. Make sure, therefore, that fountains, waterfalls, and aerators are working especially well during hot weather. Don't wait until your fish are gasping for oxygen at the surface of the water. Biological filters should be checked and/or cleaned every 4-6 weeks.
Feed pond fish no more than twice daily. Once a day is preferred so that fish food nutrients do not cause heavy algae growth.

GROUNDS MAINTENANCE TIPS FOR THE LAWN

Whatever your preferred gardening style, the lawn is likely to play a key role in your design. As well as creating an attractive outdoor carpet, making a restful green contrast with the bright colours of your borders, lawns also have a functional role. Grass must be hardwearing, especially if you have children or
pets, and needs to look fresh and healthy for as much of the year as possible. With a little management, and minimal skill, this is easy to achieve all year round. In winter, when the ground is saturated, or even frozen, healthy grass on a well-drained lawn will look greener and will stand up well to the tramp of passing feet.
In summer, the more vigorously the grass grows, the longer it stays green when drought comes and the more resistant it will be to diseases. Grass will need mowing about once a week in good growing conditions but less
frequently in early spring and late autumn, or during droughts. Unless mild weather occurs, you need not mow at all from November to mid or late March.

GENERAL GROUNDS MAINTENANCE TIPS
• Mowing is the most frequent lawn care activity.
• Set the blades or your mower to cut at 1in to 1.5in for general purpose, hardwearing lawns. Set the blades to about 0.5in to 1in for finer, more ornamental but less hardwearing turf.
• Mow when the grass needs cutting - rather than slavishly every week removing roughly half an inch to an inch of grass as you go.