Fall Clean Ups: Tools & Equipment
Once the lawns are cared for, garden beds cleaned up, hedges trimmed, shrubs pruned and irrigation winterized, there’s still one more job: taking care of everything you used to get there.
After a busy growing season, landscaping tools and equipment have usually seen months of dirt, moisture, plant sap and hard use. A little attention before putting everything away protects your investment and means you’re not starting next spring with rusty pruners, dull mower blades and equipment that won’t start.
Clean Hand Tools
Start by removing soil and plant material from shovels, spades, rakes, hoes, hand tools and wheelbarrows.
Don’t put tools away covered in wet Vancouver Island soil. Moisture left against steel encourages rust, while dried-on soil makes tools harder to inspect and maintain.
Pruners, loppers and other cutting tools deserve particular attention. Remove plant sap and residue from the blades and clean tools that may have been used on diseased plant material before storing them.
It’s not the most exciting part of fall cleanup, but opening the shed to clean, ready-to-use tools next spring makes the effort worthwhile.
Sharpen Pruners, Loppers & Cutting Tools
Dull tools make landscaping harder than it needs to be.
Fall is a good time to inspect and sharpen pruners, loppers, hedge trimmers, mower blades, axes and other cutting equipment. Sharp tools require less effort and, more importantly, make cleaner cuts on plants.
Check handles, fasteners, springs and moving parts at the same time. Tighten what’s loose, lubricate moving components where appropriate and replace anything that’s becoming unsafe.
Professionals depend on their tools every day, which makes routine maintenance part of the job—not something that happens only after something breaks.
Give the Mower Some Attention
Your lawn mower has probably earned a break by the end of fall.
Before storing it, remove accumulated grass and debris from the mower deck and inspect the blade. A dull or damaged blade can be sharpened or replaced so the mower is ready for the following season.
Gas-powered equipment should be stored according to the manufacturer’s recommendations, including proper end-of-season fuel and engine maintenance. Battery-powered equipment deserves attention too: clean it, inspect the batteries and chargers, and follow the manufacturer’s recommendations for winter battery storage.
A little work now can prevent that frustrating first warm Saturday in spring when the grass is growing—and the mower isn’t.
Inspect the Rest of Your Power Equipment
Mowers aren’t the only machines that work hard during the growing season.
String trimmers, hedge trimmers, blowers, chainsaws and other power equipment should be cleaned and inspected before long-term storage. Look for worn cutting components, damaged guards, loose fasteners, frayed cords and anything else that should be repaired before the next season.
Fall and winter are also good times to have equipment professionally serviced. Waiting until the first rush of spring can mean discovering everyone else had exactly the same idea.
Store Everything Properly
Clean equipment still needs a clean, dry place to spend the winter.
Hang rakes, shovels and other long-handled tools where possible. Coil hoses and extension cords rather than leaving them tangled on the floor. Store smaller tools somewhere dry and organized so you can actually find them again.
It’s also a good opportunity to clean and reorganize the garden shed or garage.
After an entire season of grabbing tools, dropping things off and promising yourself you’ll “put that away properly later,” fall is when later finally arrives.
Repair, Replace & Restock
As you put everything away, take stock of what survived the season—and what barely made it.
Broken rake? Cracked shovel handle? Pruners that have been sharpened one too many times? Missing irrigation tools? Gloves with more holes than fingers?
Make the list now.
Repair what makes sense, replace what doesn’t and restock the consumables you regularly use. Starting spring properly equipped is considerably easier than discovering what you’re missing halfway through the first job.
When the Last Tool Is Put Away
A proper fall cleanup is a lot more than blowing a few leaves off the lawn.
It’s mowing, aerating, raking, weeding, cutting back perennials, trimming hedges, pruning shrubs, planting bulbs, moving mulch, protecting vulnerable plants, winterizing irrigation, hauling debris and finally cleaning and maintaining all the equipment used to do it.
On a mature residential property, that can add up to a considerable amount of work.
For homeowners throughout Parksville, Qualicum Beach, Nanoose Bay, French Creek and Dashwood, putting that effort into the landscape before winter means cleaner gardens through the wet months and a much better starting point when spring returns.
And there’s something satisfying about looking back at a property after the final load of debris has been hauled away: lawns clean, beds edged and weeded, hedges trimmed, shrubs cared for and everything put properly to bed for another season.
Of course, you don’t necessarily have to spend your fall weekends doing all of it yourself.
At Thrive Landscapes, fall cleanups are part of caring for a property through the entire season. We can take care of the heavy lifting—and the raking, pruning, trimming, blowing, hauling and cleanup that comes with it—so your outdoor space is ready for winter and ready to get growing again in spring.
Outdoor spaces, simply beautiful.
