A backyard is just a perfect place to sit back and relax with your family and friends in warm summer months or cozy fall nights. No matter, whatever the season is, you would want your backyard to look neat and clean and full of colors! Basically a well-maintained backyard for the whole year.

When taking a walk around your neighborhood, have you ever noticed how some backyards look absolutely appealing and gorgeous no matter what the season is? Keeping a backyard looking best all year round can be time-consuming and requires a lot of hard work. Therefore, to make backyard maintenance an easy-breezy task for you, we are listing down a few helpful tips that will make your backyard as beautiful as ever, every month and in every season.

How to maintain your backyard all year long?

Whether you are doing it yourself or hiring a professional for your backyard maintenance, we suggest you should follow a season-wise schedule. Doing the right things at the right time is the ultimate secret sauce behind a healthy, beautiful yard that can be cherished for the whole year. So here are some tips for maintaining your backyard throughout the year.

The Winter Season (December-February)

Since it is the winter season during these months and the use of outdoor spaces is minimal, this is a perfect time to plan out your backyard space. It is the time to decide what you can do by yourself and for what things, hiring a professional is necessary. Here is what you can do for the winter season.

Soil check before Spring.

Testing your backyard soil is essential before Spring, also known as the growing season, kicks in! Testing the soil would inform you beforehand if there is any deficiency and how to fix it before you plant your fruits, vegetables, and flowers for the coming Spring.

Get rid of yard debris and leaves.

To prevent pest infestations on your plants, make sure that you remove yard debris from the backyard. Also, sweep the leaves away from your yard since it is the best ground for insects like slugs to breed and lay eggs.

Kill the weeds before sprouting.

The best time to get a jump on killing the weeds from your backyard is late winter. Before the weeds can spread like wildfire in your backyard, we suggest you spread some organic mulch on your lawn to prevent weed germination.

It is the right time for repair.

Since yards are not much used in winter, this is the best time to look for anything that needs repair in your backyard. Mend any broken trellises and the fences or list down those things that require a more extensive repair, for example, pool, patios, walls, etc.

The Spring Season. (March-May)

Now is the time to establish your bigger plans and projects for your backyard. For instance, if you plan to renovate your deck or patio for Summer, Spring is a perfect time. What else can you do to maintain your backyard this season? Have a look.

Irrigation testing.

While the ground is still soft because of the previous weather, go for an irrigation test to know about any issue beforehand. Poor drainage is the reason why backyards look bad. Therefore, if needed, improve your drainage to give your backyard its lush green sight back.

Time to plant.

This is the time to plant whatever you want in your backyard space. Spring is the season when it is still wet and cool. Therefore, before the hotter season arrives, get done with all the planting of fruits and flowers you like while the ground is soft.

Hardscape maintenance.

You can schedule a complete cleanup for your backyard in the Spring season. Look out for any hardscape repairs and do them right away. Get the wooden decks cleaned and polished, amend the cracks in paved spaces, fix any broken lights and clean the swimming pool before Summer arrives to save time and enjoy the warm weather without worrying about the repairs.

The Summer Season. (June-September)

As the warmer weather arrives, we would not recommend you work on bigger things for maintaining your backyard. You would be better able to enjoy the summer season if you had already prepared for it in Spring. Your hardscape cleaning has been done. Your pool has been cleaned and filtered. You did all the repairs that were required. What else is left then! Since this is the time for you to enjoy your outer space to the fullest, we have listed a few small things to do to maintain your backyard in the Summer.

Water your lawn.

You do not have to do this daily. But just make sure to keep your backyard lawn hydrated by giving not more than an inch of water weekly. You are lucky if it is raining, then you do not have to water the yard by yourself. The rain would do it for you. Look for any growing sprouts from the Spring. Take care of the plants that require more water.

Plan the maintenance schedule for the Fall.

Since we have suggested you not go heavy on working for your backyard maintenance in the Summer season, what you can do is just keep your renovation plans or add anything new to your yard for the Fall.

Plant Lavender.

Grow plants that do not need much water. This point will benefit you if you live in areas where rain is scarce in the Summer season. We have used lavender as an example here. Not only would lavender serve as a beautiful sight for your backyard, but it also is an excellent insect repellent that does not require much water.

The Fall Season (October-November)

Hands down, the fall season is the best of the four seasons to maintain your backyard. The weather is perfect for everything. Even if there is nothing to repair or fix, just sit back and relax in your yard or dive into the pool. However, a few things required to maintain your backyard in the Fall are as follows.

Your Fall projects.

Before the rainfall kicks in and the ground gets wet and muddy again, now is the time to get done with adding new features to your hardscape or renovating your patio, decks, walking tracks, and walls.

Finish with the planting.

Like Spring, the Fall season is also an excellent time to plant new trees and shrubs because the cool weather offers a significant growth climate, and there is enough time for the plants to strengthen their roots until Spring arrives.

Feed your yard.

Fall is a good time for feeding your backyard to strengthen the plant roots. Use a natural fertilizer for this purpose. We recommend a slow-release fertilizer as it does not get washed by the rain. You might also have to check for any spots that need refreshment, thus over-seed them to get rid of ugly patches.

Plant some colors.

Start planting your colorful spring flowers now! For a bounty of blossoms, you can grow plants like tulips, crocuses, daffodils, lavenders, sunflowers, and roses too. Add natural fertilizers to maintain healthy growth and water your plants until it rains or snows.

Do not leave that pile of leaves.

It is necessary to regularly rake all the fallen leaves and clean your backyard. If you leave the pile of leaves to float around in your backyard, not only will it be an ugly sight, but it will also serve as an excellent breeding ground for slugs to lay eggs. Remove all dead or old plants and tidy up the landscape by pruning all diseased or weak branches and plants. Doing this will make your backyard look fresher than ever and prevent the branches from falling in the winter season.

Shut the irrigation systems down for the coming winter season.

If you have a swimming pool or other water bodies installed in your backyard like waterfalls or spas, it is now time to shut them off temporarily before the freezing weather arrives. While you can completely shut down the waterfalls and spas, do not do the same for your swimming pool. You can keep its cleaning filters and pumps running, so the water inside keeps moving and does not get dirty. Otherwise, it would again be a difficult task, and you would have to start all over again when the Spring season hits.

Quick tips to save you from the hard work.

Suppose you are not much of a gardener or have a tight budget to hire any professional. In that case, you can go for simple alternative suggestions to maintain your backyards more conveniently. For example:

Use mulch beds: Using mulch beds instead of grass is a great option to reduce hard backyard work. Add natural fertilizer to the mulch bed to prevent weed growth. The best thing about mulch beds is that you do not need to water or mow them, and they just get replaced once a year. Put a cocoa bean mulch bed for a lovely brown sight and a great fragrance in the summer season.

Potted plants: Another way of reducing your yard work is to use potted plants instead of direct soil planting. This way, you can move your plants anywhere you want, unlike the plants that grow directly in the soil.

Collect rainwater: If you live in a rainy climate, save your water bill by simply collecting rainwater. You can put a water barrel for this reason that catches rainwater from the downspout so that you can use it to water your potted or other plants.

Summary.

All in all, the key to maintaining your backyard all around the year is simply keeping up with the maintenance! If you are a DIYer or prefer hiring a professional for your backyard maintenance, doing it regularly is essential. Delaying and hanging the maintenance for later will only cost you more time and money. Therefore, a beautiful, thriving backyard requires year-round care! Goodluck.