5 Tasks In Your Fall Garden

Fall is just around the corner. A fresh crop of apples, pumpkins and nuts await us. Leaves start to turn and cooler weather moves in.  What should you be doing in the next month to get your garden ready for winter and next spring?  There are several tasks in your garden in September and October to prepare for winter and spring.

Remove Dead Plants And Leaves

After the first frost, you should remove decaying stems and leaves. Turf grass won’t tolerate thick layers of leaves well. If you don’t have a lot of leaves, skip raking and mow over them to chop them into smaller pieces that will add nutrients to the soil.    Avoid composting tomatoes and peppers to make sure unwanted slugs and bugs don’t end up in your soil via fresh compost.  Fungal disease and many garden pests will overwinter in the decaying plant materail.  

If you have a green thumb and want to improve your gardening skills for the coming year, talk with a master gardener or read on needed topics from experts. Agricultural experts can help guide individuals through the process of making their garden better by sharing helpful information about what works best in different climates. Ideas for bigger projects in your landscape and the tools you’ll needs such as a chainsaw or hedge trimmers for cutting through heavily wooded shrubs and fence lines.

Plant A Fall Garden

If your first frost date falls in late September or October, you can still plant a fall garden in September.  For a vegetable garden, depending on where you live, some crops can be planted in both the spring and fall but they’ll do better in one season than the other. And of course that all depends on your first and last frost date, too.

Look for frost tolerant vegetables to grow in the fall. Some of these include:

1. broccoli
2. cauliflower
3. lettuce
4. kale
5. chard
6. cabbage
7. collards
8. parsnips
9. spinach
10. radishes
11. onions
12. garlic
13. turnips
14. beets
15. carrots

Fall is the perfect time to plant spring flower bulbs and trees too. Planning a fall garden isn’t much different from your spring garden. Just make sure you are watching the weather and have a plan in place to protect your plants from frost at night. Check out Garden Planning Guide with Printables for more information zones and printable planning sheets.  Finally, you need to know the difference between a patio and deck to know which plants to grow where. This will help you maximize your spaces’ aesthetics and functions.  Check the lawn for any damaged and sparse areas that have appeared over summer. Patch gaps with fresh grass seed or sod, to allow a new lawn to get established before winter dormancy.

Amend The Soil

Add some compost now so it has time to break down and integrate into the soil over the winter. Taking the time now to restore nutrients that were depleted during the growing season will ensure that your plants get a good start in the spring. 

Divide And Transplant

Take advantage of cool, wet fall weather to divide and transplant perennials. Depending on your climate, you can divide perennials through late October, giving them ample time to establish their roots before the first frost. Remember, the fewer roots you cut off while dividing the plant, the more resilient and strong it will be come spring. up.  The Empress of Dirt has a good post, 10 Perenials to Divide in the Fall.

Protect Perenials

Give fall- and winter-hardy plants some extra protection. Deeply water them before the ground freezes, then add a thick layer of mulch around the roots to provide insulation. Wrap tender perennials with burlap or plastic to create a mini-greenhouse of warmer air that will help protect them from low temperatures, wind, and snow.

Conclusion

Whether you’re a lawn care novice or a master gardener, everyone can use a little help around the yard.  I hope this information helps you tools on how to beautify your yard,

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