Northscape

This has been a very harsh winter and I have many customers concerned with whether or not to cut back certain plants this month.

Many people trim roses in February so I am going to start there.
Normally Valentines day is a good mark to cut back roses in zone 8(b) where we live in. However, if you are concerned with how cold it has been this winter and what lies ahead there are other ways to determine whether or not it is time. Forsythia is a flowering shrub that blooms in February and when it blooms it is a good sign that to start thinking about pruning back your roses. If you are not familiar with a Forsythia then watch for when the leaf buds begin to swell on your rose plants, meaning the bumps on the canes get larger and reddish in color.

For perennials that were not cut back in the fall consider waiting later in February or even into march to cut back, there is no rush. I would definitely encourage waiting a little longer to cut back some of the less cold hardy plants. The foliage, while dead, helps to insulate the heart of your plants. If you have already cut them back do not fear they will still make it. If you see that there is a going to be another hard freeze then consider covering where you have cut with a little mulch to protect the plant. I personally do not think we will have another damaging freeze. Normally we start cutting back heavily in February and March. If you wait too long you risk cutting into new growth.

We have cut back almost all of the ornamental grasses on the properties we maintain. February is a great month to do so. Again, if you are concerned about the weather it wont hurt to wait a little longer. I always recommend my customers cut back liriopie (monkey grass) to encourage a nice clean new growth for the year. It also eliminates the liriopie from becoming to thick.

As for you lawn, it is time to start thinking about putting a pre-emergent herbicide out at the end of February into March to help prevent summer weeds.

If you are looking to install a new landscape or lawn don't be discourage by the cold weather. We install both all year round. A little cold weather is not going to damage an already dormant new lawn or landscape. The only benefit to waiting until spring is it will look better when installed. The benefit to installing new landscapes or lawns in the cooler weather is that they are still dormant and won't go into a state of shock when installed. There is also less watering and care involved when planting in the cool season.

Thank you for reading and have a great week!

If there is anything that you may have a question about or are interested in hiring us please feel free to contact me!
228-861-4419