CLEVELAND, Sept. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- As the weather cools down, it's time to prepare for a new season of gardening activities. With fall just around the corner, autumn colors will soon arrive and leaves will begin to cover the ground in no time. Knock out fall cleanup activities to ensure a healthy yard when the weather gets warm again.
"Fall is the most important gardening season," said Elizabeth Licata, gardener-in-chief for Troy-Bilt®. "Tasks like cleaning up the garden are really about creating the beginnings of a productive garden for the next season."
To make fall cleanup easy and manageable, create a list of activities that need to be done around the yard. Troy-Bilt, a leading manufacturer of outdoor power equipment, offers a few must-do items to get your lawn in shape for fall and the winter months ahead:
- Clear away dead debris – Pull plants that have stopped blooming or have been killed by the sudden drop in temperature. Thin trees by trimming overgrown areas and removing dead limbs. Make two piles of waste, a compost pile and trash pile.
- Fertilize the lawn – Now that the weather is cooler and grass is receiving more rainfall, reduce the cutting height on your mower to 2 to 2-1/2 inches. Fertilize, reseed and repair bare spots before winter hits for a healthier spring yard. Water your lawn one inch per week to saturate fertilizer and stimulate root growth.
- Remove leaves often – Clean up fallen leaves regularly to prevent your grass from suffocating. Use a leaf blower to help make the job easier. Backpack blowers provide comfort and reduce fatigue while working in medium- to large-sized yards. Try the TB4BP Backpack Blower for its high power and quick clearing abilities when it comes to blowing leaves off your lawn, driveway, patio and sidewalk. The TB4BP Backpack Blower and other fall cleanup tools are available at Lowe's®.
- Spread compost – Collect waste materials from your garden such as grass clippings, leaves, pulled annuals and leftover fruits and vegetables to create organic compost. The natural soil bacteria and microorganisms will provide nutrients to your yard and can be used as mulch to spread over the soil. Discard material that is damaged or diseased.
While fall brings a list of chores to shut down the yard, there are several gardening activities to ensure a successful spring for next year.
- Plant spring bulbs early – Allow spring bulbs time to establish strong root systems by planting in the fall. The warm soil and cool air provides a great setting for root development. Choose flowers like tulips, daffodils, alliums, lilies and hyacinths and plant before the first winter frost.
- Plant garlic – About four to six weeks before the first frost, plant garlic cloves 2 to 4 inches apart with the pointed side facing up. Fertilize and water until garlic begins to sprout. Garlic can take up to eight months to grow and will be ready to pull when leaves become yellow and fall back.
- Plant cool weather crops – Before the first frost hits, plant vegetables such as spinach, kale, cabbage and broccoli. If planting by seed, be sure not to compact the soil or it will prevent germination. If you live in a cooler climate, plant vegetable transplants which establish quicker than seeds.
- Build a new oasis – Don't think of your garden as bare; think of it as a blank canvas for next year. Now is the time to build arches for flowering vines and roses over a pathway leading to your backyard. Consider adding a bench to an open space near your favorite garden beds.
- Transplant new trees and shrubs – Fall is the perfect time for new plants to establish a strong root system beneath the soil. Apply organic compost around the base and be sure to water new transplants adequately before the winter months set in.
- Dig a new garden bed – The perfect time to evaluate the layout of your garden is while it's bare. Widen an existing garden bed you felt wasn't big enough this summer or dig a new one to plant more vegetables next year.
SOURCE Troy-Bilt
Share this article