A lot of things you do in the garden now, this fall, can make a real big difference in how the garden performs next spring. But, there are some things you do not want to do too early. Some things you need to do right away. Watering is one of those things that absolutely necessary right now as plants are storing water for winter. So, even though things are cooling off, don’t forget to water. Regular watering right now is critical in how well plants do through the winter and next spring.
Also, don’t mulch too early let’s wait until all the leaves have fallen and the ground has really cooled off. If you mulch too early you’re keeping soil temperatures up artificially. We want plants to go fully dormant, we want them to be exposed to these temperature changes.
One of the common mistakes I see is an application of mulch that’s way too heavy for plants. You’ve seen this mulch piles up around trees in that coned shape, that’s the cone of death, as far as I am concerned. We want to keep that mulch feathered out to an inch, or an inch and a half. That’s all we need to get the benefit without causing any other problems.
It’s also an excellent time of the year to fertilize. As long as you’re using the right type of fertilizer, this would not be a good time to use one of the fast acting, water soluble, high nitrogen fertilizers. So, use something that’s low fertility and organic. That way, these nutrients are released slowly over the winter. They’re available to our plants in the spring when they need them.
It’s also a good idea to do a light pruning on some things that may be damaged by heavy ice or snow. Roses for instance, shrub roses, hybrid tea roses, grandiflora roses, a light pruning can be done now but that hard pruning is ought to be done in the spring.
There’s a great deal of moisture stored in these stems and you do not want to prune that away too early.
So, I hope some of these steps are helpful in preparing your garden for the winter.
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