The following "reminder list" is based on a Zone 6a growing region, which is centrally located for the North American growing areas. For areas north of Zone 6a add roughly one week per zone for any times given. For areas south, subtract roughly one week per zone. Don't know your hardiness zone? Find it quick on our "Plant Hardiness Zone Map". This is the month of beautiful fall colors, chilly nights and renewed vigor for all who venture out. The air is awash with the crisp, clean sounds and smells of fall and the the light scent of wood smoke can often be experienced. All of the senses are stimulated, as all of the efforts of an entire growing season come to a dramatic climax in one great crescendo. It is the time of year where we make a conscious decision whether to look at the glass as being half full or half empty. It is our choice. Is this month but the end of yet another growing season, or is it the beginning of another, with new and valuable lessons learned from the past. October is also the month when we decide whether or not to allow nature to vanquish us to yet another dismal winter trapped inside, or do we adapt and accept nature and the season for the time of change that it is and unlock the wonders of yet another season. October need not be the beginning of a long winter of inactivity for gardeners and outdoor people, if we but take advantage of what is available. October also marks the beginning of the time of year when some of the most wonderful holidays of the year begin. Yes, fall and early winter can truly be the best and busiest time of the year for any gardener or outdoor person. Around The Garden Install cloches over cool-season crops like broccoli, cabbage, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, winter greens, Chinese greens, beets, carrots, peas, etc. to enjoy fresh vegetables for many more weeks and in mild winters, all winter long. Clean the dead tops and leaves from all plants that do not offer winter cover or food for winter birds. Place these on the compost pile if disease is not present. The more you clean this fall means less you have to do next spring. Catch up on weeds that may be left from the growing season. Many of these will continue to grow throughout the winter and many of these will go to seed. Take down those trellises and netting from the growing season. Make any repairs needed now before you put them away so that they are ready to use next year. Collect and store those outdoor decorations that brightened the garden last year. Most of these will not fair well through a hard winter. Any that can not be easily moved should be well covered to provide them with protection during the winter. Sift some compost before you cover the pile for the winter. It will come in handy for those winter potting chores. Give the compost pile a good stir, wet it down if needed and cover the compost pile with a tarp or black plastic before the weather turns cold. This will help hold in heat and keep it cooking all winter. Give all beds that are not planted a good turn before the ground freezes. The freezing and thawing will help break down the soil particles and kill many insects and weed seeds before next spring. Finish planting any spring-flowering bulbs that have not been planted. Mix organic matter or compost and bulb fertilizer into the soil before planting. Mulch well and mark the location of your bulbs so you will know where they are next spring. All bulbs should be planted before the soil reached 50 degrees F. so they have enough time to develop a proper root system before spring. Gladiolas, Dahlias and other tender bulbs should be dug before the ground freezes, and stored in a cool, dark area. Dahlia and Begonia tubers should be stored in a box of slightly moist peat moss. Gladiola corms can be stored in a paper bag without additional packing. Make sure that new plantings and perennials which were divided and moved last month are kept watered if there has been insufficient rainfall and mulched well. Heavily mulch early to prevent the ground from freezing until late in the winter. This will allow the roots to continue to develop longer and keep the ground frozen once it does freeze. There is still time to set out winter pansies, flowering Kale, flowering Cabbage, and fall mums. Keep a little color in the garden for as long as possible. Watch your thermometer on colder nights. A windless, cold, clear night usually means a killing frost.... You can keep your Chrysanthemums and Asters blooming for quite a while longer if you take the time to provide a little frost protection for them. A small, simple frame covered with cheesecloth or an old bed sheet placed over your plants on frosty nights, can add a month or more of garden blooms. (Don't forget to remove the cover as soon as the danger has passed!) Dig and divide congested clumps of rhubarb. If you still have vegetables producing that you have grown tired of, consider donating the harvest to a local food pantry. For vine-ripened tomatoes all the way up into December, try digging some of your tomato plants intact, remove only a minimal amount of loose soil from the roots (leave most of it attached to the roots) and hang them upside in a cold, but not freezing location such as an unheated garage. The fruits will continue to ripen at whatever size they are and while they may be small, they will have a superior flavor to those hothouse tomatoes available in the stores. Now is a good time to harvest many of your late-season fruits and vegetables, like tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, apples, plums, etc. before they freeze and dry them for tasty treats in the winter. Drying concentrates the sugars and intensifies flavors. Some root crops, such as carrots, onions, turnips and parsnips can be left in the ground in cold climates and dug up as needed. Apply enough mulch to keep the ground from freezing, and the crop will be kept fresh until it is needed. After you have finished harvesting your summer vegetables, plant a cover crop of clovers, cow peas, soybeans, or vetches for the purpose of plowing under next spring. These nitrogen producing plants will provide good organic matter and food for your garden crops next year, as well as helping to control weeds over the winter. Cut back raspberry canes that have grown too long, to prevent damage caused by winter winds. Until it freezes hard, insects will still be active. Continue to control destructive insects so there will be fewer pests next year.
Around The Landscape Don't waste those leaves. Think of them as a crop of free mulch and fertilizer to be harvested. Collect leaves for mulch and as a valuable source of high mineral content organic matter for your compost pile. Trees draw minerals and other nutrients from deep below the root zones of other plants and deposit them in the leaves. As they rot, they provide these elements for other plants to use. Shredding them with a lawnmower or grinder helps them decompose quicker and stops compaction of the leaves. If you do not have a bagging type mower or vacuum, run fallen leaves through a chipper or place them in a plastic garbage can and shred with a line trimmer to create winter mulch for trees and flowerbeds. Don't be in to big of a hurry to cut off all of your flowering plants after frost has killed them or cut shrubs back. Many plants and seed heads will provide cover and food for winter birds. Additionally, the dead structure will lend winter interest to an otherwise barren landscape in winter. Wait until spring. But do cut back any diseased or damaged plants. Gather potted perennials that you wish to save into a protected location and cover them with leaves, straw or other organic mulching material to protect the roots from from freezing and thawing. Don't forget to water them well before covering and water them periodically throughout the winter. Plant spring-flowering bulbs throughout your landscape for spots of color early next spring when you most need the lift from the winter doldrums. Clean and repair those bird feeders and get them hung early this month. Freezing temperatures will kill most insects this month and your feathered friends will be finding it hard to find adequate food. Keep them full and be patient. It will take a few days for the birds to find them and get used to them. Clean and sanitize the birdbath before the weather starts freezing. Use a mixture of one part chlorine bleach to ten parts water and thoroughly clean the birdbath (wear rubber gloves for protection from the chlorine). Then install a birdbath heater to keep it from freezing. Check out the birdbath heater and make sure it is still working correctly. Throughout the fall and winter months you can plant or transplant both evergreen and deciduous trees and shrubs. During these months of dormancy you can do your shrub and tree moving with only minimal shock to the plants. Keep mowing as long as your grass is growing. The fall rains have once again gotten slugs and snails moving through the garden and it is not yet cold enough to drive them into hibernation. One last application of slug bait or traps will eliminate a lot of slugs and snails and prevent them from reproducing again this fall. Result: Fewer slugs next spring. Mark your perennials with permanent tags, or create a map showing their locations so you'll know where and what they are when they die back at the end of the season. This will help you to avoid digging up something you intended to keep when you plant bulbs and plants this fall and next spring.
On The Patio Keep leaves cleaned off of the patio or deck. The same tannins that give the leaves their brilliant colors will also stain decks and patios if they are allowed to stay. Cover outdoor furniture with covers or tarps or bring indoors before fall rains, ice and snow come. Winter can be very hard on outdoor furniture. Geraniums, begonias, fuchsias, and other tender plants should be brought indoors or moved to a cold frame before the first frost. The longer your house plants were allowed to remain outside in the fall, the more shock they will go through when they are finally moved indoors. If you haven't brought them in yet, do it now before the night time temperatures drop below 50 degrees F.!! If you don't feed the birds year round, now is the time to start getting those bird feeders out. It may take several days for your feathered friends to find and get used to them, but be patient - they will come. Once the birds find your offerings, it is important to keep them filled in order to keep them coming around.
In The Shed Clean out the garden shed and get proper places ready to store your garden tools and equipment for the winter. Consider installing pegboard with hooks and either label each items location or draw around each item so you know immediately what goes where. Start cleaning and oiling tools that you will no longer need to use this winter. Repaint any that may need it and ready to use next spring. Place some sand and some clean motor oil in a large bucket or tub, then slide your garden tools in and out of the sand. This will do an excellent job of cleaning them, as well as applying a light coat of oil to prevent rusting. Drain the outdoor hoses and put away for the winter. You will still need to water some plants periodically during mild weather, so make provision to drain or blow out after each use. If you use a bagging mower to harvest fall leaves, the air filter will probably need to changed because leaves create a lot of dust. Also consider wearing a dust mask while grinding leaves as the dust can be very irritating to the respiratory system. This is especially true if you have asthma or any other form of respiratory condition. Clean your gutters and downspouts to remove fallen leaves and other debris. Plugged gutters can cause serious damage to your home as well as your garden when the winter rain and snow arrives. Install gutter guards to help keep your gutters clean.
In The Home Set your indoor plants on pans filled with gravel and water to increase the humidity of dry indoor air. Pans or trays that are 3 or 4 inches deep work well. These can be painted and filled with decorative stones or marble chips to make them more attractive. Place these on cork pads or stands to protect floors and furniture from water stains. Get freeze protection ready for outdoor hydrants and install these before the weather turns really cold. Caulk outdoor windows, doors and other cracks to reduce your heating bills. Both Christmas Cactus and Poinsettias need to be kept indoors in a spot where they get ten hours of bright light and fourteen hours of total darkness (without exception), each day. Room temperatures should be around 65 to 70 degrees for the Poinsettias, but cooler (around 55 to 60) for the Christmas cactus. Continue to watch for insect or disease damage on your houseplants and take the necessary steps to control the problem immediately. Send in your requests for gardening catalogs now, so that you will have something to read and ponder on those long winter nights ahead. Spend a little time decorating your home with plant material gathered from your garden for fall. Many seed pods, grasses and flower stalks are quite beautiful in fall arrangements. Consider gathering evergreen boughs, fall leaves, nuts and berries for a beautiful and inviting wreath for your door.
For Yourself Enjoy an outdoor fire this month. October really lends itself to enjoying a crackling fire in a fire pit with a steaming hot beverage, hotdogs, marshmallows, family and friends. BBQ's can be especially nice this time of year. The fall air seems to heighten the taste buds and seems to make the food taste even better. Take a walk or drive to enjoy the fall foliage. Take a walk in the forest to collect and save seeds of wildflowers to sow next spring. Most states allow seeds to saved from wild plants. BUT NEVER DIG OR DESTROY ANY and never collect all of the seeds from a given area! Leave them for others to enjoy. Rake a big pile of leaves and JUMP IN! This act of child-like frivolity really helps to lift the spirit (yes, I do practice this every fall. So I know it works). Let yourself be kid again for a little while.
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The information presented in a gardeners calendar is derived from many sources including practical experience of the writer. While we strive to present only fact5ual information, no guarantee is given, whether expressed or implied as to its completeness or accuracy. PO'Folks Ozark Mountain Enterprises accepts no responsibility for any damages resulting from the use of this material. As with all things, PO'Folks Ozark Mountain Enterprises urges all readers to exercise sound reasoning before applying any information they may obtain from any source. |
