Fall is for Planting

September is a great time to plant and there are a number of reasons this is so. The daytime temperatures are cooler and the soil temperature is still warm, a perfect combination for planting perennials. There are fewer insects and diseases to contend with. You generally have more time for gardening in the fall. The weather isn't quite as tricky as it is in the spring and you don't have that "spring rush" feeling to get everything done after winter. There is a great selection of perennials to choose from now, including roses, bearded iris, mums and asters, colorful sedums, blanket flowers and clematis. Edibles such as raspberries, grapes, blackberries can be planted now, as well as flowering shrubs such as Potentilla and butterfly bushes. 

The key to fall planting, just like every other time of the season, is to prepare the soil.  The advantage this time of year is the soil is warm and dryer making it easier to add amendments. In our typical clay soils, that means adding organic material to the planting site is key. We carry a wide variety of bagged soil amendments, including Sheep, Peat and Compost, which is produced locally. Bagged amendments are easy to take home and place in the garden. Amendments should be incorporated into the planting site at a 50:50 ratio with the existing soil. Prepare a spot twice as large as the container your plant came in and half again as deep. Remove the plant from its container and break up the root ball. Place the plant in the planting hole just below grade, enough to form a slight depression in the soil. This will help keep water from running off too quickly.  Even though the temperatures during the day are cooler so there's less moisture loss, it's important to keep your plants watered as fall deepens into winter.  All plants will handle winter weather better, if they are well hydrated. After first hard frost, when the ground is cold add a 2" to 3" layer of mulch to help hold in the moisture and keep the ground cold and stable through the winter. 

Mountain Magic Soil Pep is an excellent choice for mulching your perennials, shrubs and roses in the late fall. Whether newly planted or well-established, it's always a good idea to water the trees, roses, perennials and shrubs every 4-5 weeks during the winter.  As a rule of thumb, water when the temperature is above 40F and the wind isn't blowing.  

Now’s the time to Revive® your lawn

 There is no doubt summer can be tough on your lawn. Your once green grass is dying off and no matter how much you water, the brown patches just seem to grow. Based on the turf samples we see daily at our Diagnostic Center, this is a common problem for many lawns in the area. 

Most turf grass issues can be traced to poor soil conditions.  Grass planted in our typical clay-based soils tends to develop shallow root systems. When the weather turns hot and dry, these short, shallow roots can’t deliver enough water and your grass begins to dry up and die. The solution is to build healthy soil for your grass to grow in. The keys to building better soil in existing lawns include; spring and fall aeration, regular applications of organic material and using granular Revive® three times a year. 

Revive® is a local product designed to improve soil structure which in turn, encourages strong root development and optimize water and nutrient uptake. By using Revive® the water you put on your lawn moves down to the roots more effectively and there’s less loss due to evaporation and run off. 

Revive® is also available in liquid form, which is handy to use to correct soil compaction and restore grass damaged by pet urine or rabbits. In conjunction with Revive®, humate is an organic product you should include in your lawn’s regular maintenance schedule. Humate is a highly concentrated soil conditioner derived from the remains of decomposed organic plant materials.  

Feeding your lawn humate will make your soil healthier, increase microbial activity and enhance nutrient uptake. Natural Guard HuMic is an easy way to add humate to your lawn.  Both Revive and HuMic are chelators. Chelators increase nutrient availability to plants. This means more of the fertilizer you put on your lawn goes to feed the grass. Just like any other plant in your garden or landscape, your grass is only as good as the soil it is growing in. Regular applications of Revive® and HuMic  material combined with sound mowing and watering practices will help ensure a healthy lawn through the rest of the season. 

Now’s the time to plant cool season crops

 August is the ideal time for planting greens and root crops. Warm days encourage good growth, while generally cooler nights bring out the flavor of your fall crops. There is a wide variety of vegetables you can grow now, including beets, kale, chard, radishes, spinach, cabbage and broccoli. Fall crops are available as starts or you can plant from seed. Choosing starts will result in faster harvest times for crops such as Cabbage, Kale, Collards and Broccoli. Starts can be found in our Annuals House. 

If you choose to plant from seed, look at the days to maturity information or days to harvest on the package or label. This is roughly the amount of time from planting seeds to picking your crops. The shorter the days to maturity, the faster you’re harvesting. Radishes for example, mature in about 25 days, so if you plant them now, you’ll be picking radishes in less than four weeks.  

For best success with your second season planting, begin by cleaning up any lingering weeds or vegetation at the planting site, then dig two inches of compost into the site. Sheep, Peat and Compost is a good choice. It’s produced locally and it works to improve your soil.  Summer vegetable crops will have depleted most of the nutrition in your soil, so adding a granular organic fertilizer at this time will keep your cool weather crops going strong. 

Down to Earth Bio-Fish is a good choice. It’s certified organic.  For an extra boost, add a scoop of humate. Humate will help your crops maximize nutrient uptake. Follow package directions for seed planting depth and make sure you take time to mark each row as you plant. Don't have room in the garden? Are your potted petunias and other flowering annuals starting to look tired? Replace them with some Asian greens such as Mizuna or Bok Choy. Asian greens add unusual shapes, textures and spicy flavors to salads. For a longer fall harvest, start seeds every two weeks and keep a frost cloth handy for those nights when cooler temperatures threaten your crop. This will help extend your "greens" garden well into late fall. There's nothing like a dinner salad picked from your own garden.  It's fresh and you know exactly what's in it. 

Deadheading and other August Chores

It’s not only what you plant but how you care for your plants that encourages blooming and fruiting through the season.  Keeping your garden looking its best means removing fading and spent flowers, before they begin to form seed pods. In gardening terms it’s called deadheading, which simply means pruning off the old flowers. This keeps the garden neat and promotes additional blooms as well. 

Get in the habit of deadheading while you walk through your garden. It’s easy to carry a pair of light pruners with you as you make your rounds. As you spot a blossom beginning to fade snip or pinch it off. Getting on a problem early is the best way to control it.  With some plants, the heat, insect damage or disease has caused severe damage. Now's the time to prune them hard.  

Check your roses and remove spent blossoms. Do the same for your container plants, including hanging baskets. Continue to feed your baskets and containers every two weeks with ferti-lome 20-20-20.  While you’re at it, take a hard look at your tomatoes and vegetables. Removing dead and diseased leaves on your tomato plants will put more energy into fruit production. 

Recognize common tomato problems such as blossom end rot (use ferti-lome Yield Booster to increase calcium levels) cracking (watch the watering) and yellow shoulders (heat, low Potassium levels, high soil pH).  The best thing to do at this point is to maintain an even watering schedule and use ferti-lome Tomato and Vegetable Food.   As for the rest of the vegetable garden,  heat, wind, uneven watering, poor soil, over fertilizing, insect damage and disease can and will influence your harvest. The best way to determine what's going on is to bring a sample of the plant to our Diagnostic Center, for analysis. We'll determine the actual cause of the problem and recommend a solution.  This is also the time to start planning for a second crop of cool weather vegetables. Peas, radishes, lettuce, kale, spinach and many more cool weather crops can be planted soon, for winter harvest. Walk the garden every day. Time spent deadheading and pruning annuals and perennials will keep the garden colorful and fresh right to the end of the growing season.