Spring clean up in the fall?

  I have read a lot about why you shouldn’t clean up your yard until spring is well underway.

  I have yet to hear anyone say you shouldn’t clean up before winter hits, though.

  That is exactly what I did last year. I made sure all the grass was neatly mowed, one yards clippings went into the compost while the other was hit with a mulching mower including the leaves and left to fertilize the Buffalo grass that has been slowly but surely spreading. It cuts down on the mud, looks better than weeds, and is in an area that I don’t currently use for food production. So, I like to encourage it to grow and spread. I’ve been planting flowers in the area for pollinators as well.

We’ve had a lot of rain here this year, so the weeds have done exceptionally well this season.

I have cut, mowed, chopped, and still I have weeds everywhere. I do have a few areas where they are finally gone from and won’t be back this season.

That being said, the wind last winter filled the yard with tumble weeds. The entire area was waist deep and even higher in other places.

I broke them down and used the results as Hugelkultur to fill raised beds and containers. Though I’m certain they left enough seeds to cover the yard in weeds for years.

While I dislike dealing with weeds, I will, of course, make the best of the situation. The green weeds will be cheerfully deposited into the compost as they are mowed or otherwise chopped down.

I’m getting a bit off topic. My main point is that I clean up fairly well before it turns cold.

I feel it saves time, come spring, and it’s time to start planting. I’m not still trying to get beds cleaned up and ready to go, and it also increases the content in my compost piles and enriches my containers as I generally dig the old plants under to break down over winter.

I have done this with the container for the tomato Brayzen, and I have grown together for at least three years now, and the following year, the plant we place in the container grows very well. It’s currently around 6′ tall and loaded with extremely tasty fruit. I’ll save some seeds back and grow another from it next season.

I haven’t noticed a drop in insects, either beneficial or pests, so I will continue doing what I started last year with clean up until or unless I’m convinced that I should not.

I think if you do it as soon as possible, it’s not as hard on the critters that might otherwise use the liter to lay their eggs in and such.

Please feel free to weigh in, and let’s discuss the matter. I’m curious to see if anyone else is doing something similar to have less work in spring or not and whether or not you believe it’s worth the effort.

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