Checklist of Things To Do in the Garden in the Autumn
By Mary Jane Bosworth
September
Many flowers have now set seeds and they may be collected and saved for the following year. Annuals and biennials are among the easiest to grow from seeds. Some you might want to consider for this project would be: marigolds, zinnias, spider flowers, strawflowers, larkspur, and sunflower. Store seeds in a cool, dry place in a paper envelope or bag.
If you will be considering planting spring bulbs for the following year, now is the time to order them, so get out your catalogs or go on-line now.
Plant pansies for splashes of winter color.
Apply a pre-emergent herbicide to shrub beds to control winter annual weeds.
Divide and replant overgrown perennials such as hostas, coneflowers, daylilies.
This is a good time to get your soil tested for next year’s plantings.
Remove spent annuals from your garden and cut the tops of perennials.
Bring houseplants indoors when temperatures dip below 50. Give them a good bath with soapy water or spray with insecticidal soap. Move plants to shade for a week to condition them to the lower light levels they will receive when they are returned to the house.
October
Now is the time to look for bargains at nurseries.
Keep watering so that plants don't get stressed.
Finish cleaning up garden beds by pulling out annuals and vegetables. Cut off tops of perennials.
Just before frost, dig up sweet potatoes and pick all the green tomatoes which can be wrapped in newspaper and will continue to ripen.
Most flowering shrubs can be propagated by hardwood cuttings. Make cuttings 6-8” long and dip in rooting hormone before setting in growing media.
Store the bulbs of Dahlia, Canna, Caladium, Gladiolus and Tuberous Begonia as they may not overwinter. Lift the roots, tubers or corms about the time of the first killing frost and store in a garage until the soil dries and then shake it off. Cutoff the dried stem and place in sawdust or peat moss and store in a basement or other cool, dry place. These plants cannot withstand freezing.
November
Plan now for spring color and plant spring flowering bulbs.
Prepare your vegetable beds by tilling or double digging the beds and adding organic matter.
Test your soil.
Keep up your garden care and harvest your cool season vegetables.
Plant asparagus this month. If you already have some, now is the time to cut back the ferny tops as they turn yellow and brown.
Mulch well around figs, pomegranates and other warmth loving fruits.
Pick, divide and share perennials.
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