Winter Yard Work

Since it took me about eight years to ever start doing any serious landscaping here at the Roediger House, it won't surprise you that I've not quite figured out what kind of yard upkeep I'm supposed to do over the winter. I managed now to identify and mark a number of limbs that need to be trimmed, because I have come to understand that this is the time of year to do that.

My neighbor across the street had told me that January 1st was around the time that I needed to cut back all my monkey grass so that it could come back clean and strong in the spring. I also still had the shriveled and dead stalks from some of the summer plants, like the basil in the kitchen garden and the vinca in the front yard. I still had some dead stalks from day lilies to tackle as well.

I don't have to tell the rest of you that part of the challenge of winter yard upkeep is finding a day that isn't too cold, windy, or wet that also coincides when I've got a free afternoon to work. That magical combination occurred just before the horrible polar vortex cold snap the week before last.

There was a nice pay-off to this work, other than cleaning up the yard. I found a muddy dollar bill and, surprisingly, a gift certificate for dinner for two at the local city club in the BB&T headquarters building.