INDIANAPOLIS -  

If you haven't made that final application of lawn fertilizer, now is the time. 

Keep cutting the lawn as long as the grass is growing --a 2 inch height would be ideal.  Remove any accumulation of tree leaves from lawns to prevent smothering of the grass.  Remove the foliage from daylilies. You will often find fat slugs under the dead foliage of these plants where they spend the winter. Be sure to smash the slugs!

Paperwhite and amaryllis bulbs make great gifts.  When planting amaryllis bulbs that come with media and a pot, be sure to add a couple inches of sand to the bottom of the pot to keep the plants from falling over when the media becomes too dry. 

Christmas lights strung on outdoor shrubs and trees should be turned off around midnight to prevent the bulbs from drying the foliage. 

Keep a snow shovel and ice melt handy, because one of these days they will come in handy.  The average annual snow fall for Indy is 24 inches.  Last winter, only 9 inches fell, so we could be in for above average snow. 

Happy Holidays, Dr. Dirt