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October
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Beautiful Spring Landscaping Starts in the Fall
If this is your first year working in a garden on a property you purchased from among Rochester homes for sale or Saint Cloud homes for sale, you might think fall is a time to kick back and take it easy. Sorry, but there's really lots more to do before winter arrives! Following are some tips so you'll get the most out of the fall gardening season in Minnesota.
- Clean up the property.
From front to back, walk around your property with a rake and a garden bag. Rake up twigs and leaves blown from trees and whatever else is lying around. More leaves will fall, but you will either rake them up and dispose of them or mow them into mulch as fall passes. Also, clip spent perennials down to an inch of the ground, so they will return stronger next year. You may want to deadhead some if they're still producing flowers. You can also gather seeds now by clipping flower heads and labeling them in envelopes. - Improve your soil.
Fall is a great time to improve your soil. Wherever you have an empty spot, perhaps where you've cut back perennials, removed annuals, or gotten rid of dead plants, you can dig with a garden fork to a depth of 8 to 10 inches, turning over the soil. Then, mix in compost or fertilizer to improve the soil. If you're going to leave it unplanted till next year, cover it with mulch. - Plant perennials and annuals.
Fall is the best time to plant perennials. Cool weather takes heat stress off plants, and there may be more abundant rain. Plants may not do much before cold weather sets in, but once they become dormant, they will start storing energy in the roots so they will be healthier next spring. Some of the best perennials for our area are Hollyhocks, Liatris species, Cleome species, Bachelor's Buttons, Coneflower, Aquilegia species, Calendula and English Marigold, and Black-eyed Susan. We have a bit of time before frost occurs, so plant some colorful annuals to keep your garden looking cheery. Plant pansies since they can survive a mild frost. Also, place some container mums around; they can be brought indoors during winter or planted in the ground for next spring. - Plant vegetables.
Fall vegetables should have been started indoors during August or planted from seed in August, but you may also find some plants at nurseries to plant in fall, including Spinach, kale, beets, turnips, peas, radishes, and Swiss chard. Protect plants from light frosts for as long as they're growing and producing. - Plant trees and shrubs in fall.
Trees and shrubs do better if they are planted in fall before frosts. Trees and shrubs will slow down and go into hibernation mode, storing energy in the roots so they will be ready for a burst of growth in the spring. Even if snow has already fallen, you can still plant trees and shrubs. Just be sure to plant them before the ground is frozen. - Keep watering as needed.
If it's dry this fall, keep watering the root ball of trees, shrubs, and perennials as needed until plants go dormant. - Mulch your garden beds and new plants.
Use mulch generously with new plantings of perennials and annuals, trees, shrubs, and vegetables.
More questions about fall gardening in Minnesota? Call today.