Garden Tasks for Late Fall

Posted by Katie Elzer-Peters
September 21st, 2009
Filed in Seasonal Garden Maintenance
Tags: cool crops, fall, frost, mulch, winter

September and October are the months to prepare your garden for the winter. In warmer areas, the fall is the time to plant cool-season vegetables. In colder climates, gardeners need to “put the garden to bed.” Here are the main fall gardening chores for the fall, including warmer and cooler climates.

Cool Climates (Pennsylvania and north)

• Remove dead flower stalks (example: daylily flower stalks), dead leaves, flowers and debris, but wait until perennials are fully dormant to trim back to the ground. Removing as much dead plant debris as possible will help avoid problems with diseases overwintering.
• Rake the yard, shred and add leaves to the compost pile. Leaving dead leaves on the ground can cause turf problems over the winter and into spring.
• Plant spring blooming bulbs before hard frosts occur regularly. Be sure to water the bulbs after planting so that they can establish a healthy root system before the ground freezes.
• Continue to mow the lawn as long as it is actively growing.
• Winterize irrigation systems.
• Plant new trees and shrubs.
• 
  Create winter containers with ornamental Kale, small evergreen shrubs or shrubs with berries and pansies.
• Install cold frames to extend the season for lettuce, spinach and other cool crops. Continue to vent the frame so that the temperature is not too high on sunny days.
• Mulch beds for the winter.

Warm Climates (Virginia and South)

• Prepare vegetable garden and plant cool season vegetables such as lettuce, broccoli, spinach, leeks, cabbage, radishes, turnips and kale.
• Mow the lawn closely and over-seed with winter rye if desired.
• Plant cool-season annuals including: snapdragons, pansies, violas, Swiss chard, osteospermum, calendula, and petunias.
• Rake leaves and remove dead plant debris.
• Plant new trees and shrubs.
• Divide perennials.