December Residential Award Winner
The Ward 2 home of Mike Maner at 112 Spinnaker Lane is the December Residential Beautification Board award winner. The traditional home features a tidy lawn with colorful plantings in raised bordered beds. The beds feature lantana and vinca, and Ligustrum Sunshine shrubs, Yaupon holly shrubs and variegated grass define the front of the house.
Commercial Winner for January, February, and March
Circle K gas station on the corner of Hwy. 119 and Butler Road
Preparing your Garden for Spring
According to Southern Living, the time from winter into spring is a good time to take care of your lawn, planting and pruning bushes, trees, and plants. Here are some pro gardening tips for the winter months.
A dry January winter day is a good time to mow a dormant, warm-season lawn. Mowing the lawn removes fallen leaves and pine needles and allows you to inspect the yard for winter weeds. Control them by spraying when the weather warms in spring. Winter is also a great time to plant new shrubs and trees. Evaluate your landscape, remove unattractive plants, and replace them with others that you prefer.
Except for maples and birches, February is a good time for pruning trees. If limbs are more than one inch in diameter, use the three-step method for removing branches. Make the first cut on the underside of the limb around six to eight inches away from the trunk. Cut about half the thickness of the branch. Go to the top of the limb, and cut off the limb halfway between the underside cut and the trunk. The resulting stub should then be cut within 12 inches of the trunk.
As mentioned above, winter weeds are evident in dormant warm-season turf inn January and February. Apply spot applications of post-emergence herbicides or hand pull the weeds to control. When selecting a post-emergence herbicide—such as Purge, Weed-Stop, or Weed-B-Gon—make sure you follow label directions, and verify that the product is approved for your particular grass type. Otherwise you may injure or kill it.
When forsythia, quince, star magnolia, and saucer magnolia buds show a touch of color, they are easy to force into bloom indoors. Cut branches, taking care not to destroy the natural shape of the plant. They should be in full bloom several days after you place them in a vase of water indoors.