Plant Gardens 101

For me, rose gardening in the fall is a little bitter-sweet!

My blooms are smaller, leaves are showing signs of wear and tear and yet the rose gardening I do now will be crucial to the success of next years growth. Lets call it rose gardening insurance.

The last rose show is over, the days start getting shorter and the children are back in school but as rose growers we still have work to do—the four most important tasks of fall.

PICK AND CLEAN

Stop fertilizing and start your clean up. From the beginning of September on, there is no need to fertilize your rose beds and pots because you do not want to encourage new shoots to develop as winter approaches. This is also the period of the highest incidence of mildew problems such as black-spot so it is time to pull away all leaves that show signs of disease and to rake the beds below to remove all traces of the black-spot or mildew spores. Yes, they overwinter so get rid of them with your garbage. Deadhead, keep the beds scrupulously clean and pick away at the damaged leaves. (more…)

Autumn is the perfect time to start preparing the garden for winter. Indeed, the months of September and October present the ideal opportunity to get outside while it is still relatively warm, in order to tidy up the bedding and ensure everything is fully organised before the cold weather and frosts set in. Not only that, but laying down the right groundwork now will help the garden to reach its full springtime potential.

One of the first autumn tasks any gardener should tackle is the weeds, particularly if they have been left to run riot throughout the summer months. In addition to helping the soil prepare itself for spring, regularly removing weeds should weaken their persistence, thus encouraging them to stay away. What’s more, by pulling up any weeds now, there is less opportunity for them to spread their seeds and further infiltrate the garden. (more…)

November is a busy month in the garden. Time spent now in pruning, tidying and protecting your plants and trees will pay dividends in the spring.

Weeding in November prevents roots thickening and spreading over the winter months, making them a nuisance when the temperature warms up in March. So as soon as ground becomes clear, dig over the soil and spread manure. This is also a good time to double dig areas of ground where total replanting or a new vegetable garden is being planned or poor/heavy soil is preventing growth.

Just remove the top layer to form a shallow trench and then dig over the soil at the bottom of the trench adding compost. Then repeat, filling the first trench with the top soil from the second; the soil from the first trench then fills in the last trench. (more…)

As the summer begins to wind down, plan ahead for the cooler autumn season in the garden. Here is a list of ten tips to follow as you work in the garden this fall.

1. Plant perennials. Fall is a great moment to plant those hearty year-rounders, the plants and flowers that look lovely and keep their health despite the climate. Chrysanthemums, boltonia, angelica, salvia and aster are all low garden maintenance.

2. Don’t be straightforward with your plants. Curving lines are great for a garden, as some plants tend to follow the beat of their own drummer when they grow. Planting in straight lines may only frustrate you when they don’t grow that way, and curving lines give your garden a more creative appearance anyway.

3. Keep the soil most. Don’t let the cooler temperatures fool you; this is easy to forget, but essential to the success of your garden, and especially new plants and flowers. The autumn season brings rain in many climates, making this one an easy step to follow. (more…)

Early autumn is the best season for successful composting piles. To start, here are some points on how to build a compost pile:

* lay sheets of plastic on the ground.

* place a 6-inch layer of leaves or grass clippings on the plastic.

* shovel a 1-inch layer of beneficial garden loam over the leaves.

* exchange on a regular basis some loam and leaves.

* the pile needs to be at least 3 feet by 3-feet and 4 feet tall. (more…)

Preparing for the Winter Months: Gardening in October

When you feel that first solid bite in the breeze and you see the songbirds winging their way south, and the trees are bursting with fire-laden hues, you know you can’t be spending the weekend curled up by the fireplace with a good book. Not for long.

While the weather is still gardener-friendly, you must shorten your “to-do” lists for the coming of late fall and early winter. Now is the time to attack your lawn and garden by planting your spring bulbs, buying and maintaining your trees and shrubs, doing your late autumn lawn care, using common-sense watering strategies, building a compost bin and making your own compost, controlling the many common garden pests, and winning at the weed-whacking war before the sudden onset of the fickle, cold and all-enveloping winter season.  (more…)