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By Nature's Way Landscapes

Look, I'm just going to say it: November along Colorado's Front Range is when expensive landscape mistakes happen.

Every spring, someone calls me saying their sprinkler system won't turn on. Or their $400 blue spruce turned brown over winter. Or they've got weird cracks running down their maple tree trunk.

And almost every time? It's because something that should've been done in November... wasn't.

I started Nature's Way back in 2019, but I've been working with plants in this region way longer than that. Long enough to know that Boulder, Lafayette, Louisville, Broomfield, Erie, and Niwot don't follow normal winter rules. Long enough to see the same preventable problems happen over and over.

So here's your no-BS guide to November landscape care for Northern Colorado—the stuff that actually matters, nothing you can skip. And yes, everything here is backed by Colorado State University Extension research—because when it comes to our weird climate, science matters.

Why Front Range Winter Is Weird (And Why It Matters)

When people move here from the Midwest or back East, they think they know winter.

They don't.

We don't get consistent snow cover. We get 65 degrees on Tuesday, then 15 degrees Thursday night, then 50 again Saturday. That freeze-thaw-freeze cycle? Murder on plants.

Plus: 300+ days of sunshine means intense winter sun that literally cooks tree bark on the southwest side, then temperatures plummet 40 degrees when the sun drops behind the mountains at 5pm. Those bark cells can't handle the shock—they rupture. Colorado State University Extension calls this "sunscald" and I see it constantly.

And we're dry. Really dry. According to CSU Extension, we might get less than half an inch of moisture November through February. Your evergreens keep transpiring all winter—losing moisture through their needles—but their roots are in frozen soil and can't replace it.

Result? They die of thirst surrounded by snow.

Bottom line: Front Range winter is weird. It requires specific care. Here's what actually needs to happen.

Part One: Simple Stuff You Should Handle Yourself

These don't require special equipment. Just a nice afternoon and a little attention.

Winter Watering (Yes, Really—CSU Says It's Critical)

"Wait, I'm supposed to water in winter?"

Yes. Absolutely.

November through February, we live in a high-altitude desert. Cold but bone dry. Your evergreens are still breathing, still losing moisture. When the ground's frozen, they can't replace it.

I've pulled out so many dead evergreens. $300, $400 trees just brown and crispy. And 80% of the time it wasn't freeze damage—it was drought.

What CSU Extension recommends:

Professor James Klett, CSU Extension landscape horticulturist, is clear: "You should water only when air and soil temperature are above 40 degrees with no snow cover."

What to do:

Pick a nice day (mid-50s, sunny, no snow). Around lunchtime, water deeply. Focus on evergreens first, then shrubs, then any trees planted in the last few years.

Don't just spray for five minutes. Really soak them—30 to 45 minutes with a soaker hose. Water should penetrate 12 inches deep (CSU Extension's recommendation for proper root zone watering).

According to CSU's fall and winter watering guidelines, you should do this every 3-4 weeks when we haven't gotten measurable moisture. If four weeks pass without snow cover, it's time to water.

Local soil tip: Lafayette, Louisville, Broomfield, Erie—if you have the heavy clay common in these areas, water even slower or you'll get runoff. Boulder, Niwot—sandier soil drains fast, water every 3 weeks instead of 4.

This one thing will save you more money than anything else on this list.

Disconnect Every Garden Hose (Seriously, Every One)

Five-minute task. Thousands in savings.

Water backs up in connected hoses, freezes, expands back into the pipe inside your wall—boom, burst pipe. Sometimes you don't know until spring when your basement's flooding.

Disconnect them. Drain them. Coil them in the garage.

Same with fountains—drain completely, bring pumps inside.

One Last Mow and Leaf Cleanup

Light layer of chopped leaves? Great for soil.

Thick leaf mat under snow? Snow mold—those dead circular patches come spring.

One final pass with a mulching mower. You should still see grass through the leaf bits. If you can't, rake or bag some. CSU Extension Denver warns that leaving thick leaf layers can promote snow mold growth over winter.

Last mow: cut to 2-2.5 inches. Not scalped (exposes grass crowns to damage), not tall (mats under snow).

Walk Your Property and Notice Stuff

Without all the foliage, you can see structure. Where does water pool? Which trees have dead branches? What struggled this year?

You don't need to fix anything now. Just notice. Make notes.

A lot of our best projects started with homeowners spending a November afternoon just observing their yard.

Part Two: The Professional Stuff (Where Expertise Really Matters)

Some tasks require specialized knowledge or years of experience with our specific climate. This is where seasonal property care makes the difference between landscapes that merely survive winter and those that thrive come spring.

Sprinkler System Winterization (The Big One)

Every spring: "My sprinklers won't turn on. Can you look?"

I go out. System's destroyed. Cracked pipes, blown valves, split backflow. Sometimes $2,000 in damage.

"Did you winterize last fall?"

"Well... no. But it was mild, so..."

It only takes one hard freeze. One night at 20 degrees. Water in your irrigation lines freezes, expands—physics. PVC cracks, valves split, heads shatter. Much of it happens underground where you can't see it.

Why professional winterization matters:

Here's the thing about sprinkler winterization: it's not just about blowing air through the lines. It's about knowing your system inside and out.

Most DIY attempts fail because:

You might not know where all the low spots are. Water pools in places you can't see—valve boxes, pipe low points, the backflow assembly. Miss one spot and that's where freeze damage happens.

The backflow is where most damage occurs. About 40% of winter damage I see is from improperly drained backflow preventers. Most homeowners don't even know where all the drain points are on these devices.

Every system is different. PVC vs. polyethylene pipe need different approaches. Drip zones vs. spray zones. Pump systems. Multiple backflows. The number of zones and their layout. After doing hundreds of these across Boulder, Lafayette, Louisville, Broomfield, Erie, and Niwot, we know the common system types and their quirks.

I've talked to handy people: "I've got a compressor, I can handle it." They blow air through, hear it coming out the sprinkler heads, think they're done. But water stays trapped in valve chambers and low spots. Then it freezes. Then they're calling me in April.

What professional winterization looks like:

We show up with professional-grade equipment designed specifically for irrigation winterization. We drain the backflow preventer completely (where most damage happens), then systematically blow out every zone—watching carefully until we see pure air with no water mist.

We know how long each zone needs based on pipe material, zone length, and elevation changes on your property. We know the proper pressure for your specific system so we clear water without damaging components.

Takes 30-45 minutes. We set your controller to winter mode, check that everything's properly drained, and document completion.

The real value? Peace of mind. You know it was done right by people who've winterized hundreds of systems across the Front Range. No lying awake in January wondering if you missed something.

Timing for our service area:

First hard freeze typically:

Boulder/Niwot: November 1-10 (higher elevation) Lafayette/Louisville: November 5-15 Erie/Broomfield: November 8-18

But weather doesn't care about averages. CSU Extension Denver notes that "October is notorious for sudden dips in temperature that can seriously damage irrigation systems." We've seen freezes October 28th. We've seen mild weather until November 20th.

The window is closing fast. Professional winterization should happen by Halloween through the first week of November at the absolute latest.

Tree Protection and Wrapping (Winter Sun Actually Cooks Bark)

Sounds weird, but: Colorado winter sun can cook your trees.

Bright January day. Southwest side of your maple heats to 60-65 degrees by mid-afternoon. Bark cells warm up, start photosynthesizing.

Sun drops at 5pm. Temperature plummets 40-50 degrees in two hours.

Those cells rupture. You get long vertical cracks—sunscald. Permanent, ugly, open door for disease and insects.

Colorado State University Extension explains that "sunscald is often called southwest injury because it most often occurs on the southwest side of young tree trunks...High intensity sunlight during winter heats up the south and southwest side of deciduous tree trunks, which causes cells to come out of dormancy. After sunset or as weather changes, temperatures may drop below freezing, and this temperature drop kills active cells."

I see this constantly on honeylocust around Louisville and Lafayette. Also maples, ashes, fruit trees. Especially young trees without thick bark yet.

Solution: Wrap trunks with white tree wrap for winter. White reflects sun, keeps bark temperature stable.

CSU Extension's specific guidance: Wrap in late October or early November, remove the following April. Year-round wrapping causes rot and harbors insects.

Most vulnerable species (according to CSU Extension and the Colorado State Forest Service):

• Honeylocust (extremely susceptible)

• Maples (all varieties)

• Linden

• Ashes

• Fruit trees (apples, cherries, plums)

• Crabapples

• Young trees (under 3 years old)

Not every tree needs it. Big mature trees with thick bark? Usually fine. Professional assessment determines which specific trees need protection—that's where years of plant knowledge really matters.

Also: Proper mulching (not mulch volcanoes)

Quick rant: Stop piling mulch against tree trunks like little mountains.

Mulch touching bark holds moisture → rot. Attracts voles that chew bark and girdle trees. Keeps bark soft when it should harden for winter.

Proper mulching is a donut, not a volcano. CSU Extension recommends 2-4 inches deep, extending from a few inches away from the trunk out to the drip line.

Never touching the trunk. Pet peeve. Moving on.

Fall Fertilization (Most Important Feeding of the Year)

Surprises people: late fall fertilizer is actually the most important feeding for lawns.

Why: In fall, when air's cool but soil's still warm, cool-season grasses (Kentucky bluegrass, fescue, ryegrass—basically everything in our area) put energy into root growth instead of blade growth.

Properly timed fall fertilizer—high potassium, slow-release nitrogen—fuels that underground expansion.

CSU Extension's PlantTalk Colorado confirms: "Fall is the best time of year to fertilize Colorado's bluegrass lawns...Simply fertilize with nitrogen sometime during late September to early November at lower altitudes...Fall fertilization produces dense, green spring lawns without the mowing chores that come with spring fertilization."

Come spring? Lawns green up 2-3 weeks earlier. Thicker. Handle summer stress better. All because of November roots.

But timing is really specific. Too early: soft growth gets killed by frost. Too late: ground's frozen, grass can't use it.

Professional application hits the exact window based on soil temperature monitoring. Lafayette's clay behaves differently than Boulder's soil. Broomfield's microclimate differs from Niwot's. Erie's elevation and exposure create yet another variation. Plant and soil knowledge matters.

What Proper November Care Actually Protects

Your spring sanity. System activates without repairs. Evergreens stay green. Lawn wakes up early and thick. Trees have no sunscald cracks. You're enjoying your yard, not scrambling to fix preventable damage.

Your property investment. Proper seasonal care compounds over years. Trees that never experience sunscald develop strong, disease-resistant bark. Sprinkler systems properly winterized last 25-30 years instead of needing premature replacement. Lawns with consistent fall nutrition develop deep roots needing less water long-term.

Your peace of mind. You're not lying awake when the forecast says 15 degrees, wondering if you should've done more. You know it's handled.

Our Approach: Year-Round Property Care

Here's the thing about November landscape care: it's not really about November. It's about understanding that your property needs different care at different times of the year.

We don't do one-off services. We do comprehensive seasonal property care—because a sprinkler blowout in November without proper spring startup creates problems. Fall fertilization without appropriate summer care wastes your investment. Tree wrapping without ongoing plant health monitoring misses the bigger picture.

Our property care approach includes:

• Seasonal transitions (spring startup, fall winterization)

• Plant health monitoring (what needs protection, what's thriving, what's struggling)

• Soil and turf management (fertilization timing based on actual conditions, not calendar dates)

• System maintenance (irrigation adjustments, drainage observation, proactive repairs)

• Ongoing communication (visit updates, photo documentation, service history tracking, easy service requests)

We build customized property care packages based on what your landscape actually needs—not cookie-cutter plans. Your landscape doesn't experience seasons in isolation, so we take a comprehensive approach that evolves with your property throughout the year.

When you work with us, you're not hiring someone to blow out your sprinklers. You're partnering with people who understand Front Range landscapes, know your specific property's quirks, and think about your outdoor space across seasons and years.

That's our Stress-Free Promise: Expert work, proactive planning, ongoing communication. You get the outdoor sanctuary you want without the stress of managing every detail.

→ Book a free property assessment

Let's walk your property together, discuss what matters to you, and create a customized care plan that protects your investment year-round.

The Honest Truth About November

November's weird. Still feels like fall. We get gorgeous 60-degree days. Mountains are beautiful. Easy to think "eh, I've got time."

Then you don't.

One overnight freeze. That's all it takes.

I'm not trying to scare you. Just being straight: every April I fix expensive damage that was completely preventable. People were probably thinking about it in November, meaning to do something, then life happened and they forgot.

The properties that sail through winter without drama? They're the ones with proactive seasonal care in place. Someone's thinking about the details so the homeowner doesn't have to.

Quick Answers to Questions People Always Ask

"Is it too late if we've had a freeze?"

Maybe. Every day you wait after a freeze increases risk. Professional assessment can determine if damage has occurred.

"My system's only 2 years old—does it need winterization?"

Yes. Age doesn't matter. Water freezes regardless. Newer systems sometimes have more vulnerable components.

"Can I just shut off the water and drain the valve?"

No. Water stays trapped in lines, low spots, valve chambers. That water will freeze. Professional winterization clears it all.

"Do you offer just sprinkler winterization without the full care package?"

Yes, we can help with sprinkler winterization, though we find most properties benefit from comprehensive seasonal care packages that we customize to your specific needs. During your consultation, we'll assess your property and recommend the services that make the most sense for you—whether that's a single service or an ongoing care plan.

"How often do I need to water in winter?"

According to CSU Extension, water every 3-4 weeks when temps are above 40°F, no snow cover, and we haven't gotten measurable moisture. Focus on evergreens, newly planted trees, and shrubs on south/west exposures.

"What areas do you serve?"

We provide seasonal property care throughout Boulder, Lafayette, Louisville, Broomfield, Erie, and Niwot.

Ready to Protect Your Property Year-Round?

Your landscape needs more than quick fixes—it needs a comprehensive care plan that protects your investment through every season.

→ Schedule a free property assessment

Let's walk your property, discuss your goals, and create a customized care plan designed specifically for your landscape.

Research-Based Information

This guide is based on Colorado State University Extension recommendations and research-backed best practices for Front Range landscapes:

• CSU Extension: Fall and Winter Watering (Fact Sheet 7.211)

• PlantTalk Colorado: Sunscald of Trees

• PlantTalk Colorado: Fall Lawn Fertilization

• Colorado State Forest Service: Fall Tips to Prepare Trees for Winter

For more Colorado gardening information, visit PlantTalk Colorado or contact your local CSU Extension office.

Ready for stress-free property care?

Let's create a customized plan that keeps your landscape thriving year-round.

→ Schedule Your Free Assessment