09 Dec Can landscaping be done in winter?
The answer to this one is a resounding “yes”. If you have the right knowledge, skills and equipment, landscaping can be done in winter.
10 reasons for getting landscaping done in winter
- Your garden will be disrupted when you are least likely to want to use it
- Most trees and plants are dormant and least likely to be affected by landscaping works
- Fewer problems with keeping newly laid turf well-watered
- Concrete and mortar is best when allowed to set slowly in mild weather
- Top landscapers work all year round but waiting lists tend to be shorter in winter
- Any drainage problems are immediately obvious and can be fixed in the early stages of the project
- Garden Lighting can be tested thoroughly during working hours
- Birds and wildlife are less likely to be disturbed
- Neighbours are mostly indoors and won’t be affected by noise
- Less dusty – the house stays cleaner
Less Disruption to you and your neighbours
There’s no getting away from it. A garden makeover is pretty disruptive. Landscaping involves machinery, materials and people and at least one of those can be noisy at times.
Your garden will most likely be out of bounds at times. Open footings are a hazard, setting mortar shouldn’t be stepped on and parts of the site will be muddy and unpleasant underfoot.
With all that hustle, bustle and noise going on outside you’ll be glad to be indoors with the windows closed. Which means, that while the landscapers are working outside, you are less likely to be disturbed by noise, dust or mud.
Less disruption to plants and wildlife
Landscaping goes on for all 12 months of the year – even in the worst weather we’ll have something to do. We’re always very conscious of our responsibility to the environment and to local wildlife and take extra care to not harm any living things.
However, in winter time there is a little less wildlife to be disturbed. Birds are not nesting, bees are not foraging, hedgehogs are hibernating and butterflies are nowhere to be seen. We’re still very vigilant but less likely to have to compromise with creatures. Which means that we can be a lot more efficient.
Hard landscaping in winter weather
Building garden features in winter needs careful planning and a little bit of frost-proofing – but we’re used to that….
Hard landscaping is the term we use to describe the parts of a garden makeover that don’t involve living things. I suppose you could call it the structure of the garden. Paths, patios, decking, pergolas, walls – that sort of thing.
Many hard landscaping features require some sort of mortar to keep the structure strong. Mortar and grout are funny old things. They are applied wet and then allowed to dry into a hard and really tough substance. But if mortar dries too quickly it can become dusty and weak. In summer time we need to keep wetting mortar and render to ensure a nice even finish. In winter however, we normally get fabulous results – even if we do need to wait a few days for them to happen.
Temperatures below freezing are not usually the hard landscaper’s friend. However, years of experience have taught the Holland Landscapes Team a few tricks to avoid being disrupted by Jack Frost. We have tents, tarpaulins and a whole host of other useful things up our sleeves.
Extensive groundworks can really disrupt your lifestyle for a while – there’s an advantage to having works done at a time of year when you are not wanting to use your garden
Turfing in winter weather
Provided that we can prepare the soil properly, laying turf in winter time gets some really great results. Soggy, heavy clay can be a pain to work with, but a combination of good landscaping machinery, some dry topsoil and a lot of experience means that turfing is an all year round job for landscapers.
The main advantages of turfing in winter are
- Turf is less likely to burn out or suffer from heat stress
- Soil is easier to keep moist
- Householders are in no hurry to walk on the lawn before roots have settled
- Grass puts down strong roots before it tries to grow leaves resulting in a more robust lawn.
Shorter waiting lists
Really good landscapers will always have a waiting list for jobs to be done. It doesn’t matter what time of year it is, if the Company has a good reputation there will a queue of people wanting their gardens madeover.
Round about February, as good weather approaches, people start dreaming of spending the spring and summer months outdoors. That’s when they start researching and approaching garden designers and landscapers for help. Which means, of course, that landscaping professionals are super-busy and under pressure between March and September.
Forward thinking people however, know that if they arrange to have their new garden built during the cooler months of the year, they can have the whole of spring and summer enjoying the outdoors with absolutely no disturbance.
How to organise your winter landscaping project
The Holland Landscapes Team are always happy to help organise a winter landscaping project. Whether you have a design in mind or need inspiration for your new-look garden, we can help.
Start by contacting for an informal chat about your outdoor space
Contact Paul Baker of Holland Landscapes
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