It's that time of the year to put up the holiday decorations. The initial step can be the most daunting; digging the lights and blow-ups out of the garage and attic. After you do that, come back and read this blog. We offer some holiday advice to keep your decorations from damaging your lawn and landscape.

Testing, testing, testing
The first thing to do is to test everything. Make sure every bulb turns on, and then look closely at the wires. Do you see any fraying or splits? If so, it may be time to retire those strands. Minor electrical issues can, unfortunately, turn into big fires.

After you see your lights, feel them. Modern lights on the market are LED and don't heat up, but if you're using the strands that have been going on the house for generations, they may get warm. Be sure you don't put them on dry leaves.

Before you put them out, turn on your sprinkler system. Make sure no water will douse the lights when they're on. Water and electricity don't get along, leading to short circuits or possibly more damaging issues.

Electrical tape is a great tool this time of year. Tape up every plug. This effort will keep water out of every connection. Also, make sure that the extension cords are made for outdoor use. Some of them aren't.

Stay light
Now that we've made the lights as safe as possible, let's get to the lawn decorations. Use lightweight ones when you can and move them around. Heavy objects can kill the grass under them even when the lawn is dormant for the season. The last thing you want to see in the spring is a circle where your blow-up Frosty the Snowman was in December. If you have your holiday-heart set on some 12-foot tall penguin or wooded reindeer, put them in a landscape bed. Stake your favorites into the dirt, and you don't have to worry about your lawn.

When the holidays come to an end, take down your decorations. One, there's no reason to have a dancing Santa in your yard after Christmas, and more importantly, it speeds the healing process of the grass that it's been trotting over for the last month.

Once everything is boxed-up for another year, get your irrigation system back up and running. Your lawn and plants could use it after what, for them, is the worst time of the year.

We don't want to come across as a scrooge; we simply want your landscape to look good when things start growing again in a few months. If you need help maintaining your yard or managing your property's irrigation needs, don't write a letter to Santa; email ELT Landscape. We can help, and the jolly old elf is busy.

Happy holidays!