NEIGHBORHOOD
GARDEN FOR OCTOBER 22, 2016
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REMINDERS
BY GEORGE EDGAR
Gladys and I have
written a number of articles about things that need to be done this fall
in order to get ready for winter. This is a summary of some of the
information as a reminder of what needs to be done in order to
overwinter your plants and also in order to have color in the Spring. 1. October is the month to get ready
for spring, especially if you want spring flowers from bulbs. October is
the time to plant
tulips,
daffodils,
crocus, and
hyacinths if you want
the spring flowers. It is surprising how many people come into the
garden center in April and May asking for tulip bulbs.
It is also time to plant ALIUM bulbs in order to have those big round purple flowers next
year. Dig and divide if needed as they multiply and get crowded. Then
get them back in the ground as soon as possible.
2. It may seem strange to think that
October is the time to get ready for spring. But I have found that the
more I do in the fall, the easier it is in the spring. Also, I have
found that the better I prepare my flower garden, my vegetable garden,
my lawn, my trees and shrubs for winter, the healthier they are in the
spring. Many diseases and insects over winter in the debris from dead
leaves and flowers in your garden and so they need to be removed. Do not
put diseased material in your compost pile. 3. Get out a notebook and write down
what worked and what didn’t this year. What flowers really bloomed for
you and what were disasters? Write it down. I have a hard time
remembering in the spring which tomatoes I planted where and which ones
really did well. I also write down which row in the vegetable garden had
what kind of plant. Every year I try to rotate and move things over one
or two rows. You might also want to write down where you got the plant
or seed that did very well so you can go back next year.
Make a note of any noteworthy productive or unsatisfactory
varieties of vegetables that you planted this year. Such information can
be very useful when planning next years’ garden. 4. Did you plant a new shrub or tree
this year? Write down the kind of tree or shrub, the cultivar, where
purchased, and where planted. Be sure and save that tag that came with
the tree or shrub. I also have a drawing of my rose bed with the name of
each rose. Without that map I can’t seem to remember what the names are. 5. Remove any diseased or
insect-infested plant material from your garden, as it may harbor
over-wintering stages of disease or insect pests. If you leave this
plant material in your garden, you are leaving diseases and insects
which will begin to reproduce again next spring and add to next years'
pest problem. Do not put these in your compost pile. 6. Rake up leaves, twigs and fruit
from Apple or Crabapple trees and dispose of them in the trash to help
control Apple scab disease. Remove all mummified fruit from fruit trees
and rake up and destroy those on the ground. Good sanitation reduces
infestation of insects and diseases the following season. 7. Keep Strawberry beds weed free.
Every weed you pull now will help make weeding much easier next spring. 8. Reduce Peony botrytis blight and
Hollyhock rust by removing and disposing of all old leaves and stems
this fall. This will reduce the carryover of the diseases during the
winter and you will have less trouble next year. My Peony bed is such
that I can just run the lawn mower over it and pick up all the debris.
Apply a liquid or dust copper fungicide to the Peony bed after stems are
cut and removed and again in the spring when new shoots are about 1 inch
high. 9. Inspect trees and shrubs for
bagworm capsules. Remove and destroy them to reduce next year’s pest
population. Soak the bagworm capsules in a pail of water for an hour or
so, or step on the bags so the eggs are destroyed, then put in the
garbage can. 10. Iris borers overwinter in old leaves and
stems left in the garden. Make sure you cut back the foliage after it
turns brown and remove from the garden. Do not put in compost. 11. Blackspot can overwinter in the dead rose
leaves and foliage left in the bed. Do not put any diseased leaves and
plant material in your compost where it can overwinter. Copyright 2016 |