There are many people out there who think that once the first freeze comes, their gardening job is done for the year; no more weeding, no more digging, no more top soil, no more compost; and no more watering till next season. Well, I am going to let you in on a little secret: They are dead wrong. If you do the proper work in the fall, you will save yourself a lot of work and a lot of frustration in the coming season.
For starters, you can add to your compost, especially with all the leaves everywhere. Now would be a very good time to start a compost pile or add to your existing compost pile. There should be an abundance of dead leaves, flowers, plants, grass clippings, kitchen waste, and annuals. All you need to do is put it all into the compost bin, and you are well on your way to helping your garden significantly next year. It is very important not to compost anything that was diseased. If you compost a plant that was diseased, there is a very good chance that the disease will affect the rest of the compost pile, and ultimately affect your plants in the coming year.
The fall is also a very good time to add mulch into your top soil. Adding mulch to the top soil will help oxygen enter the top soil, help carbon dioxide exit the top soil, and help the top soil retain moisture. Adding mulch to your top soil is a much easier task either before or after your annuals are done doing what they do. Generally, you will probably want to add about three inches of mulch into your top soil for the optimal results.
Weeding, although one the most hated gardening jobs in the world of gardening is also one of the most important jobs involved in gardening. You should continue to weed your garden until the weeds stop growing for the winter. This will give you a tremendous head-start when you start planting next season.
You should keep tabs on any veggies that may still be growing. There are actually a number of veggies that could continue to grow even after the nights (and days) get a little cooler. It is important to be careful, though, when picking your veggies. If they are dead, you can add them to your compost pile. If they are, however, diseased, you need to throw them in the garbage in a plastic garbage bag as soon as possible to prevent the spread of the diseases. When you are done picking your veggies, you should rototill the top soil. This will incorporate the organic waste into the top soil. The top soil should be left rough to prevent the negative effects of top soil erosion.
You should also definitely keep your lawn looking nice. Too many people stop mowing their lawns too early which is not good for the lawn. Not mowing it will enable to mold to grow within the bends of the grass when all kinds of goodies, like snow for example, start to come. You should continue to mow your lawn until it stops growing completely. The perfect height for grass is about three inches high. This way the grass will block the sun from helping little weeds grow, especially crabgrass. The fall is also a great time to fertilize your lawn. This is because the fertilizer will be absorbed by the grass and the top soil, but it will not cause the lawn to grow, since it is too cold for that. This is a good thing, since the lawn is getting fertilizer, but it is not growing like it does in the summer. Therefore, you do not have to mow your lawn, as opposed to in the summer when fertilizer in your lawn will make you mow your lawn even more than usual.
One more thing that you could do I the fall which is good for your landscape in general is prune. The best time to prune is usually during dormancy. Everyone knows that the most dormant time for a plant is after they are done growing and have started to die for the winter. You should make sure that you are pruning properly. Whatever it is you wish to prune, take a few minutes beforehand to speak to a local landscaper or research it on the internet. The last thing you want to do is prune something incorrectly and end up with a bunch of plants, bushes, or whatever that do not grow or blossom properly.
Some people believe that when the weather starts getting colder and the leaves start to fall, it is time to put away the gardening tools and wait until next spring to work on their garden again. Wrong. Winter is an important time to maintain your garden's health and assure yourself a good crop for next year. You may think that might take to long to prepare your garden, but the truth is that it takes less than one day to prepare your garden for the upcoming winter.
When the nighttime temperatures drop to less than forty-five degrees Fahrenheit for more than four days in a row, or frost is forecasted for your area (usually around late October or November) you know its time to begin preparing your garden. You should begin by evaluating your garden design, check which plants grew well in the past season, and which plants did not do well. Fall is a good time to decide which plants will remain in you garden next year, and which ones should go.
It is also a good time to decide which new plants you want to grow. To make your garden more colorful and healthy, be sure only to plant the more hardy plants during the fall so that they can withstand the winter. Some plants that will do fine being planted in fall are: rudbeckia, Aster Novi-belgii, Anemone Japonica, panicle hyandea, endive, escarole, and Brussels sprouts. You can find all of these and more in gardening magazines or your local nursery.
After you have finished this you should begin cleaning up your garden. Begin by pulling out weeds that may have cropped up, and raking fallen leaves. Weeds and rotten leaves can carry insects and diseases that might be harmful to your garden. You should also rid your garden of spent annual plants, and harvest your vegetables and other plants that cannot withstand the winter weather. After fall has come and gone, the leaves will be off your trees and you can see the rotten branches. Trimming off the unwanted branches from your trees isn't necessary to your gardens health, but may help later on by not dropping branches on your plants and not blocking too much of the sun.
If you have younger trees you should consider wrapping them and supporting them with stakes to help them survive the winter wind and cold. Putting mulch over your garden for the winter can be a helpful way to protect plants from sudden temperature changes and heavy snow. For mulch you can use about five inches of shredded bark, pine needles, or a variety of other materials. You have to be careful not to mulch too early, because some insects may still be alive and able to take shelter in it for the winter.
Once you are finished with your gardening tools you should clean them and make sure they are in a safe place where they won't rust and you know where they'll be for next year. Before winter comes you should always set out slug repellent, as slugs are one of the worst bugs to have in your garden. If you have a pool or fountain in your garden, be sure to take out any fish that you have in them and bring them inside. There's nothing sadder than a fish frozen in a block of ice.
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