Gardening: Autumn’s approach calls for diligent work
The cool days we had last week were luscious and made the short heat wave over the weekend manageable. Am I tired of hot weather? Yes, and I am really looking forward to fall, my favorite time of year. There is something soothing about buttoning up the garden.
It will likely stay warm into mid-September, which will be perfect to get the vegetable gardens to ripen fruit. It’s been a bit too hot for tomatoes and peppers to set well, but with days only in the 80s now we should see a good flush by mid-September.
It’s not too late to slip in a second crop of lettuce to go with those ripening tomatoes on a BLT. The ground is warm, and the seeds should germinate quickly.
September is a good time to do any lawn installation or repair. Last fall’s overnight switch to winter seems to have stressed out some lawns. Rake out the dead grass and rough up the dirt a little and then spread a good quality seed with a hand seeder. Lightly rake the area and roll it to get the seed in full contact with the soil. Lightly cover the area with mulch and water well. Water the area lightly every day until the grass emerges. The lawn will go dormant when it starts getting cold but will be ready to come up quickly in the spring to take advantage of the spring moisture.
Fertilizing lawns in the fall is as important as doing it in the spring. A mid- to late-September application allows the roots to go into winter with extra energy that will help with spring growth when the lawn comes out of dormancy.
September and early October are a good time to dig and divide perennials and the only season to successfully divide oriental poppies and peonies. For perennials, dig a few inches out from the root ball and then use a sharp serrated knife to cut the clumps apart and replant. The warm soil will allow the roots to grow until the ground cools. Finding the poppy root ball can be a challenge if you didn’t mark where the plant was before it went dormant. Probe the soil gently to find it and then dig, divide and replant it in a sunny spot.
Wait for peonies to get a good frost and start turning yellow. Start digging around the clump about 6 inches out and gently tease the roots out of the ground. Look for clumps of pink eyes at the top of the root and divide so each section has several eyes. Replant the root section so the eyes are just below the soil surface. If they are planted too deep, the plant won’t bloom.
As your beds begin dying back, resist the urge to clean them out. Just chop up garden debris and drop it back on the bed. It forms a mulch, and decays over time as well as providing habitat for insects and small critters. Leftover seeds feed many critters.