The season is changing fast and so is the garden. It’s time to start preparing your garden for the winter cool down. Here are 10 fall garden chores you can do to get your garden ready for it’s winter sleep.
Pull out dead or under performing plants
Now’s the time to be ruthless. No more stringing half dead plants along to see if they will bounce back. Pull them and put them into the garbage or compost.
Dead head any spent flowers
Deadheading is cutting back spent blooms. It makes the plants look a lot more tidy and some will even rebloom depending on the type of plant.
Save seeds
If your growing plants for seed now’s the time to start collecting. Saving seeds from your plants can save you money in the garden.
For tips on how to save money in the garden check out this post!
Take cuttings
If you plan to overwinter any plants it’s time to take cuttings. Many plants root very well and you can grow them indoors over winter and bring them back into the garden in spring.
Clean up any debris
Nothing is worse than having a garden cluttered with the leftovers from the spring and summer. Pick up any empty pots, tools, trash, branches, piles of debris and discard them. You can also take time to organize your garden storage spaces whether its your garage, shed, basement or wherever you keep your garden things.
If you plan to grow any fall vegetables check out this post to get you started!
Pull Weeds
By now if you haven’t been keeping up with the weeds they are probably taking over. It’s best not to let them get too big before pulling them. Take a half hour and work an area a day to keep it from being overwhelming.
Don’t Prune
If you know what shrub you are cutting for goodness sakes don’t prune it until you know. Do some research to figure out what shrub it is and when’s the best time to prune.
Wrap up garden projects
We’ve all got those loose ends in the garden. Fall is a great time to wrap up those projects and to table new project until next year.
Clean Pots and Tools
Cleaning your tools and pots is a great way to prolong the life of your garden equipment. You should clean them throughout the season but at least once a year is better than nothing.
Mulch
Fall is a good time to add another layer of mulch to the beds before winter. Make sure you pull weeds first so that they don’t overwinter. Adding mulch to your garden beds is a great way to seal in moisture and provide extra protection to your plants over winter.
The fall garden is a time of reflection and maintenance. Try not to start too many new projects unless they can be completed quickly but most of all enjoy all of the hard work you put into your garden this year.
Happy Gardening!
Ciearra
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