You may have seen the slogan ‘Fall is for Planting’. There is a lot of truth in this as you will have to do a lot less watering in the Fall than in the Spring and Summer, and roots develop better in cool temperatures. This means your plants will be much stronger and grow faster next year.

The best time to plant new evergreen shrubs and trees in the fall is September through early November. Deciduous (lose their leaves) shrubs and trees can be planted from September into early December.

Early fall is also an excellent time to plant perennial flowers. Perennial borders should be evaluated and upgraded in September and October. New borders planted now will produce many more flowers next year, compared with planting in the spring.

Even though the temperatures start to drop in September it is still very important to water plants, especially newer plantings, during any dry spells.

September through October 15th is your last chance to seed a lawn and have it establish before winter. (Lawns in the shade will take longer to fill in, and these need to be seeded by September 20th, or wait until next March.)

Existing lawns will benefit from dethatching, adding lime and over seeding this month. In the third week of September lawns should be cut lower in the 2-3″ range. Fertilizer such as 25-10-5 can be applied in mid September, with weed control if needed. As the leaves start to fall they can be cut up and left on the lawn with a mulching mower. Heavy leaf accumulations should be raked or blown off the lawn.

You may be tempted to prune this month, but it is best to wait until mid November when plants have stopped growing.

This is your last chance to order bulbs by mail! You can start buying bulbs in the local garden centers at the end of the month. Bulbs can be planted anytime from October into early December.

At the end of the month you can start bringing your house plants back inside. Remove dead leaves, hose off vigorously, and then spray with insecticidal soap and horticultural-grade oil solution before bringing plants indoors.

Call Creative Landscapes for all your landscaping projects!

Check the Garden Planner next month and every month to have the best garden in your neighborhood!

Happy gardening from the folks at Creative Landscapes!