Instinct tells you fall is the time to steer you focus away from your garden until next spring, but according to horticulturalists, fall is a vital time to work on garden maintenance. Klara Heller, a certified nursery consultant at the Home Depot, said autumn is a great time to develop and expand your garden.
Plant your tree or shrub now
Fall is an excellent time to get planting your tree or shrub. Plant it on a cool day when the sky is overcast. Putting them in the ground now will help these plants establish a great root system before the frost.
Heller recommends watering the ground before you put the root ball in the ground as well as after. “The water helps wash the soil down into to the roots so the roots don’t have air pockets.” She said. More Tips on planning shrubs.
Some shrubs and trees to get in the ground:
·Azaleas
·Holly
·Dogwood
Stop feeding your perennials
Your perennials need food for great blooms deeper green foliage but fertilizers are going to hinder your plants readiness for the first frost. “If you keep feeding it in the fall, the roots don’t go dormant,” Heller said. “That’s not good because then they are going to freeze.” If you want it to survive the dreary winter colds, let them go dormant.
Plant your hardy annuals.
Get your mums, snapdragons and pansies in the ground now. This is a great way to add color to your garden as your as those warm weather annuals start to die off. Make sure you select plants that are cold hardy so it will continue to bloom throughout October.
Mums for sale at the Home Depot. Mums and Snapdragons can survive in colder temperatures. Photo: Jessica Gonzales
Great Hardy Annuals:
·Hardy Mums
·Pansies
·Snapdragons
Stop deadheading reseeding annuals
Deadheading is a great way to get your annuals to develop more flowers, but if you let the flower fall on its own, you will have better luck reseeding naturally. “This is how Peony and Iris and Phlox do it.” Heller said. “They send out new shoots every spring.”
Use blood meal when you plant bulbs
It’s the perfect time to get your bulbs in the ground for next spring. Get your daffodils, tulips and hyacinths in the ground now because they need freezing time in order to look great next spring.
If you use blood meal, you can give them a jumpstart in the spring. “You can put blood meal on it, so when the snow melts, the granule will dissolve right over the bulb, but its not necessary if you have a good bulb.” Heller said.
Bulbs to get in the Ground:
·Tulips
·Daffodils
·Hyacinth
Story by Adam DeRose
