What to Know About Fall Garden Winterization in Maine
As fall rolls in and temperatures drop across southern Maine, it’s the perfect time to prepare your garden for the colder months ahead. Winterizing your garden protects your plants, improves soil health, and sets your landscape up for success come spring.
Here are some simple tips to get your garden ready for winter.
1. Cut Back Perennials and Dead Annuals
Trim back dead or dying perennial foliage to prevent pests and disease from overwintering. For pollinator gardens, you can leave a few seed heads and stems standing to provide habitat for birds and beneficial insects.
2. Plant Fall Bulbs for Spring Color
Now is the time to plant bulbs like tulips, daffodils, and crocus before the ground freezes. We offer premium bulbs imported directly from Holland and install them as part of our fall services. When done right, fall bulb planting ensures a burst of spring color with minimal maintenance.
3. Apply Garden Winterization Fertilizer
We apply a specialized winterizer fertilizer to perennials, shrubs, and trees to support strong root development and help plants store energy for spring. This treatment strengthens plants against harsh winter conditions and gives them a healthier start once the ground thaws.
4. Protect Young and Sensitive Plants
Wrap young shrubs or newly planted trees with burlap or protective cloth to reduce damage from wind and snow. In exposed areas near the coast, even salt spray can harm sensitive plants like hydrangeas or boxwoods so this is a key to successful garden winterization.
5. Clear Out Vegetable Beds
Remove spent vegetable plants and debris to avoid harboring disease or insect eggs. Add compost to replenish soil nutrients. If you’re looking to build raised beds or add new garden areas, late fall is a great time to plan.
6. Water Before the Ground Freezes
Give your trees and shrubs a deep final watering before the ground freezes. Even in colder months, moisture is critical to root health, especially for evergreens and newly planted material.
FAQs ~ Fall Garden Winterization
When should I start winterizing my garden in Maine? Aim to start in mid to late October, or once most of your plants begin to die back and before the ground fully freezes.
Can I still plant in the fall? Yes. Fall is a great time to plant trees, shrubs, and some perennials. The soil is still warm enough for root growth, and cooler air helps reduce transplant stress.
Do you install bulbs? Yes. We plant high-quality fall bulbs imported from Holland and install them for clients who want early-season blooms. Reach out early to reserve your selections.
Do you apply fertilizer in fall? Yes, this is a key step to garden winterization. We apply a winterizer fertilizer to perennials, shrubs, and trees to help with root development and long-term health.
Do I need to prune everything? Not necessarily. Some shrubs and perennials benefit from pruning in early spring instead. If you’re unsure, we’re happy to take a look and offer guidance.
Do you offer fall cleanup services? Yes, we offer both fall leaf cleanups and garden winterization services. They are separate services, though, so be sure to let us know if you’d like to be scheduled for one or both.
Schedule Fall Garden Winterization
Watering evergreens until freeze-up
Evergreens keep losing water through their needles and leaves all winter, and they cannot replace it once the ground freezes. Most winter browning on rhododendrons, arborvitae and boxwood in Southern Maine is drought damage, not cold. Keep watering deeply, about an inch a week, through October and into November whenever rain falls short, until the ground begins to freeze. New plantings from this year and the last need it most. A slow soak at the drip line, where the feeder roots are, is worth more than a quick spray over the top.
Burlap screens and anti-desiccants
Winter sun and wind are what dry out evergreens, especially on the south and west sides of a house and on exposed coastal lots.
- Burlap works best as a screen on stakes, a few inches from the plant, on the windward or sunny side. Wrapping it tight against foliage traps moisture and can rub branches.
- Anti-desiccant sprays coat broadleaf evergreens like rhododendron and boxwood to slow water loss. Apply on a dry day when temperatures are above freezing, following the label.
- Neither replaces fall watering; they help plants that went in well-watered.
Snow load on upright shrubs
Wet coastal snow splays multi-stem evergreens like arborvitae and upright junipers, and the branches often never close again. Tie them loosely with soft twine or tree-tie strap, spiraling from bottom to top, so the stems move as one. Remove ties in spring. Brush heavy snow off shrubs with an upward push rather than shaking loaded branches, and never try to free ice-coated branches, which snap.
Road salt along drives and walks
Plow spray and salty meltwater burn foliage and build up salt in the soil along driveways and streets. Set a burlap or snow-fence screen between the road and sensitive shrubs, avoid shoveling salted snow onto beds, and in spring water heavily to flush salt out of the root zone. For a long-term fix, replant plow edges with tougher species from our salt-tolerant plantings list.
Mulch late, and guard against voles
Winter mulch goes on after the ground has frozen, not before. Its job is to keep the soil frozen evenly so freeze-thaw cycles do not heave newly planted perennials out of the ground; put down too early, it invites rodents to nest. Keep all mulch a few inches away from trunks and stems. See the mulching guide for depths.
Voles tunnel under snow and chew bark off young trees and shrubs at the base. Before snowfall, set cylinders of hardware cloth around young trunks, pushed slightly into the soil and tall enough to clear expected snow depth, which also stops rabbits.
For perennials, pair this with what to cut back in fall. Our garden winterization service covers shrub and bed preparation in Portland, Scarborough and nearby towns.