With the first frosts behind us, and the holiday season fast approaching, November offers one last set of golden days in which to clean up the back yard and make ready for the winter months ahead.

Recently, we spoke to experts in the Outdoor Living experience to help target some great clean up and winter preparation projects you may want to tackle while the weather is still reasonably warm.

Adam Guilford, client services representative from DeckTec had these pieces of advice for taking good care of your deck:

• After putting your furniture away, this is a good time to sweep and wash your deck.  Use warm water and soap to remove discolorations from pots and furniture scrapes.  Do not, however, power-wash your deck, as it will strip both your finish and leave splinters in your wood.
• Roll up any carpet or rugs, and put them away for the winter. “Outdoor carpeting is especially hard on your deck,” said Adam. “It traps moisture and causes wood to rot.”
• If you have a stain-covered deck, now is a great time to touch that up.  Just be sure to leave the underside of the wood clear.  Again, this is to provide a breathing surface for your wood, and avoid the damages caused by tannins trapped by stains and paints.
• “One of the best things you can do for your deck,” said Adam, “is to build a permanent roof cover over it.  Roof covers cut the damaging UV rays that are so hard on wood, reduce the cost of maintaining the beauty and finish of your deck, and keep you cooler and more comfortable outdoors all year.”

Don Chandler is the president of Spa Brokers, a family owned spa and sauna business headquartered in Aurora, CO.  His top tips for taking care of your spa include:

• Mostly keep up with your weekly maintenance routine—top off chemicals, check filters and keep the water filled.
• “Some people will drain their spa for winter,” said Don, “but winter is one of the best times to use it.  If you drain and shut down your equipment, you’re missing out on all of the benefits of using a spa in the colder months.”
• If you do decide to drain your spa, pick a nice day, and let the water out.  Then have your spa professionally winterized, which will include making sure there is no standing water in the pump and jets. Homeowners don’t generally have the equipment to blow out the inner workings of a spa, and if this small amount of water is left standing, it will freeze and cause considerable damage.
• If you plan to enjoy your spa year round, do not turn down the temperature.  Keep your spa hot and ready to use.  In the case of power outages that can occur in our winter months, spas are designed to keep their temperatures up for more than a week, so you won’t run into any problems with pipes or plumbing freezing.

And let’s not forget about the backyard itself.  Betsy Kelson, a staff horticulturalist with Jared’s Nursery, Gift, and Garden shop in Littleton says this is a great time of year to do some preparation work in your yard:

• Now is the time—before the ground freezes—to put down winterizing fertilizer.  “If you’re on a limited budget and have to choose between fertilizing in the spring or fall, I’d suggest the fall,” said Betsy. “This is because right now, grasses are putting down their best roots.”
• If you have perennials in pots and want to keep them for next year, buy some bubble wrap, wrap the containers and put them out of direct wind.  “Some people will then cover the pots with a layer of burlap for a nicer look,” said the Jared’s expert.
• If you plan to bring plants indoors for the winter, be sure to look for bugs that may have hitched a ride. Specific bugs that can be removed with a warm wash of your plants include aphids, spider mites and fungus gnats. “The fungus gnats are particularly fond of our potting soils,” warned Betsy.
• And, if you want some terrific color even in our winter months, now is the time to plant pansies.  They will reward you for the next several months ahead.

So whatever your focus, now is the time to get out and enjoy your Outdoor Living experience with a little clean up.

What about you?  Have you a favorite fall clean-up project?  We’d love to hear from you.

(Photo by Mathias)