While our summers are full of bright sunshine, they are humid. That humidity makes thunderstorms a little more unpredictable. When there are high levels of humidity, you can almost guarantee that there’s going to be rain at some point throughout the day. Also, at times, we are close enough to get affected by the outskirts of hurricanes and tropical storms coming up the coast. Since Hurricane Season officially started on June 1st this year, it’s only a matter of time before the systems start making their way up. The potential for high winds increases during this time of year, which can be extremely damaging to your property. Your landscape can take a beating without the right precautions. With these recommendations, you have the chance to keep your landscape alive and well, no matter what Mother Nature might throw at it.
- Keep up with regular maintenance: Regular maintenance is vital to protecting your landscape during high winds. Your plants will fare better with regular prunings, fertilization, watering, de-weeding, and more. This routine care will keep the plants sturdy.
- Staking trees & plants: New trees and taller plants are vulnerable to average weather until they fully establish themselves. The best way to keep them protected is to secure them with two to three stakes and some string.
- Reinforcement is critical: Trellis and outdoor structures such as pergolas, awnings, gazebos, and more should be reinforced. To do this, update the footers and anchoring systems to keep them secure during storms.
- Stop wind erosion: In this area, we don’t have to worry about wind erosion too much, but multiple storms in a row can become an issue. To help reduce that kind of erosion, have your garden raised off the ground in plant beds. The soil will be more contained and can be leveled more.
- Plant in groups: Go for smaller clusters of plants. The larger the space, the more vulnerable your plants will be from the weather, especially high winds. Smaller clusters will provide themselves more protection.
