November garden chores
Photo credit: Associated Press
I woke this week to a hint of frost on the garden. Just enough to let me know the garden clock is ticking down and I'd better get my fall chores done.I took a minute to check on my Internet gardening friends to see what they are up to in November. Here are some of the chores on their lists.
Sara Barrett of The New York Times talked to Barbara Pierson, nursery manager at White Flower Farms in Litchfield, Conn., and this was her advice:
- To protect roses from freezing and thawing, mound two shovelfuls of garden soil, compost, shredded leaves or composted manure at the base of the plant -- after the ground freezes. Make sure to pull it away in the spring.
- Let most of the perennials die back on their own. The green leaves are still sending energy to the crown where next spring's "eyes" will emerge. When foliage turns yellow or transluscent (such as hostas) cut them back to within a few inches of the ground. Cutting back peonies will prevent next spring's flowers from getting gray mold.
- Remove the seed heads of phlox, but let the leaves and stems turn yellow. Cut monarda now, she said, because it is a garden bully. Cut late blooms off the echinaceas but leave the foliage.
- Keep weeding! Chickweed is a winter annual and it will go crazy in the spring if you don't dig it out now.
- Plant your new bulbs now, and spread some bulb food on top of the spots where last year's bulbs are.
Meanwhile, Lisa Ueda lists seven fall gardening mistakes that will cost you money on the blog, Colc Climate Gardening.
They are:
1. Letting fall leaves lie.
Running them over with a mower so their chopped up bits can decompose in the lawn is one things. But leave them as they are on the ground can provide cover for voles, which can eat hostas and other plants to the ground.
In addition, tromping through the garden in the spring to clean out these leaves will needlessly compress the cold, wet soil.
2. Not protecting your marginally hardy plants.
Playing outside your temperature zone is fun, but if you don't protect these plants you will lose them.
3. Neglecting to divide perennials.
Once you see a dead center in a clump, you have waited too long to divide your perennials and you are in danger of losing the whole business.
4. Ignoring diseased foliage.
Make sure you remove any plant leaves suffereing from powdery mildew or blackspot. It will make your garden healthier next year.
5. Forgetting to shop for end of season sales at your favorite nursery.
You might find plants you have always admired for only pennies on the dollar.
6. Waiting too long to plant out container plants that you've been nurturing from seed. If you don't, they might not survive the winter in the containers.
7. Not prepping clay pots for winter. Cleaning, drying and storing pots can help eliminate any diseases. Lisa recommends using hyrogen peroxide. And let the pots dry thorough so they don't crack during a freeze.
Comments
Peaceful picture.
Posted by: Michelle Brown | November 6, 2010 4:50 PM