You know it’s that time of year again – when the muggy heat is unbearable and afternoon showers are as predictable as sweat stains.  Yes, summer is here and hurricane season is upon us once more.  While personal safety during hurricanes should always take priority, there are a few things to be considered that can save your yard, too!  Starting early is key as some yard preparation tips can be rather time consuming.  Here are a few to get you started:

Tip 1: Clear your yard.
It is important to reduce the amount of outside objects that could potentially fly around and cause damage. This includes any lawn ornaments, flags, toys, and anything else lying around unsecured. Once you’ve removed those items you can now focus on preparing your plants, flowers, and trees.

Tip 2: Check your trees.
To avoid wind damage, trim any loose, broken, or weak branches from trees. It would be more beneficial to trim trees down to standing sticks that stay rooted, than to keep fuller trees that are more likely to be uprooted by the wind.

Tip 3: Bring plants indoors.
Bring any plants you can indoors to protect them from wind damage. If you are unable to move plants indoors due to size, try to move your plants as close to the house as possible.

Tip 4: Wrap certain trees in blankets or landscape clothes.
The idea is to avoid an uprooted plant, regardless if some minor damage such as broken limbs occurs. Remember not to use plastic in doing so and collect cuttings from unremovable plants.

Tip 5: Provide your yard with adequate drainage.
Obviously heavy rains accompany the winds, and flooding is as much of a problem as wind damage.  In order to avoid flooding, it may be necessary to provide a dry ditch (possibly filled with rocks) to collect the excess water.

If you follow these easy tips, it can save you the time, money, and hassle of dealing with problems later.  Remember, for all your prevention and maintenance products, visit Palmer’s Garden!