Agriculture Department

Chesapeake Master Gardener Tips

September 24, 1999

Virginia Cooperative Extension, Chesapeake Office

Fall Planting & Mulching

Autumn is just around the corner. The cooler and crisper temperatures of autumn mean different things to different people. Some of us are reminded that soon we will see tree leaves changing color and spend our days raking those leaves. Others think of autumn as the time for harvesting collards, kale, pumpkins, and celebrating fall holidays. As autumn nears a gardener knows it is time to get the lawn and landscape prepared for winter while enjoying the colors of the season. Just when you think you can slow your pace and rest a bit, you remember the fall garden needs to be planted, it is time to plant trees and shrubs, the lawn needs some maintenance, it's time for annuals, bulbs, and perennials, and you need to mulch the landscape plants. And you thought the "honey-do list" was getting shorter! Let's tackle these duties one by one.

• Fall Vegetable Gardening It is late in the season, but you still have time to put a few vegetable and fall herb plants in the garden. Some of the vegetables and herbs do better in the fall than in the spring because the weather is cooling down instead of heating up. Planting a fall garden also gives you a chance to try any crops you didn't get to in the early spring. We are familiar with the collards, kale, and other greens grown in the fall, but you can also plant other cool weather crops such as some varieties of garden peas, broccoli, cabbage, and beets. Some cool season crops such as the spinach, broccoli, and peas can withstand a little cold, but will need to be protected from heavy frosts. Other crops such as what are commonly called "greens", (kale, spinach, and collards) actually improve in flavor after a frost. Those "greens" along with evergreen bunching onions, parsnips, and some other root vegetables can survive over the winter if mulched. Some of the best quality vegetables are produced during the warm days and cool nights of the fall season, so do not be afraid to extend your garden into the fall. Don't forget to add herbs to your fall garden. The fall gives you that bonus of adding to your herb supply for the winter months to come as well as giving you a supply of fresh herbs to add to those fall soups, stews, and breads we enjoy when the weather is a little cool. There are many herbs to choose from, so don't limit yourself. Let loose and experiment a little. Some suggestions to start with include rosemary, cilantro, chives, mints, dill, and basil. Soon you'll be the envy of the neighborhood with fresh vegetables and herbs during a season when everyone thought the gardening was done.

• Tree and Shrub Planting Although with enough TLC, you can plant any time of the year, fall is the best time. Fall and winter give the plant time to adjust to the shock of planting and to develop the root system it will need for the following summer season. In selecting your new trees or shrubs, look for plant varieties, which are well adapted to the area and your individual planting site. Some plants are better suited to cooler or warmer climates than we have in Chesapeake. If a plant survives best in a well-drained site, it may be doomed if planted in a wet area. It is always best to plan your landscape and give the plant the greatest chance for survival. Once you get the new residents of your landscape home, water them and start to prepare your site for planting. Following guidelines from Virginia Cooperative Extension publication 430-295, you want to dig a shallow hole two to three times as wide as the root ball for these plants. You don't want to dig holes deeper than the root balls or put loose soil under the roots because loose soil will compact with time leaving the shrub or tree planted too deep. When planting you should backfill with existing unammended soil. Do not incorporate organic matter such as peatmoss into the backfill as this can cause problems with water movement and root growth in the plant. You can add slow-release granular fertilizers into the backfill to provide nitrogen, or phosphorous and potassium if a soil test recommends it. Do not use a fast-release fertilizer as that can dehydrate the roots of the plant. When placing the plant into the hole, make sure you remove any ropes, nails, lacing, or wrapping material. These can restrict root growth or result in damage to the plant as it tries to grow. After the plant is in the hole, positioned the way you want it, backfill half of the soil and then water to settle the soil. Then you finish backfilling and water again. You can mulch the plant with two to three inches of mulch and make sure the mulch doesn't touch the trunk or plant stem. Stand back and admire your handiwork.

• Your Lawn If it has been awhile since you last took a soil test, you might want to have one done. Virginia Tech recommends taking a soil test every three years to keep up with the pH and nutrient requirements of your soil. Autumn is a good time to take the soil sample and make any modifications recommended. If you have a fescue lawn, autumn is a time for maintenance. You may need to overseed. If you overseed, use two to three pounds of turf-type fescue seed per 1000 sq. ft. Many lawns do not need overseeding every year, so take the time to determine if your lawn really needs overseeding. Make sure you allow time for the new grass to grow and receive at least two cuttings before fertilizing. When you overseed you need to be aware of the water requirements of the seed and make sure to get one inch of water applied weekly. You should fertilize your fescue lawn in the fall. If not overseeding, the times for fertilizer application are September, October, and November. Each time you want to apply one pound of actual nitrogen per 1000-sq. ft. of lawn and you need to allow at least 30 days between fertilizer applications.

  If you have a warm season turfgrass lawn, your lawn is beginning to go into its dormancy season and you have different maintenance requirements this time of the year. You do not want to fertilize warm season turf such as Bermuda, Centipede, St. Augustine, or Zoysia at this time of the year. You need to wait until late spring for that. Bermudagrass can be overseeded with rye grass. You can mow overseeded bermudagrass at 1 to 1 ½ inches and leave the clippings on the turf as a natural fertilizer, if the clippings do not accumulate heavily on the surface.

• Annuals, Bulbs, and Perennials Fun stuff first! What could be more fun than have flowers now when everything else seems to be slowing down? The cool season annuals give you that instant color through this season. Through the diligence of greenhouse nurserymen, you now have a selection of plants to choose from. You will find ornamental cabbage and kale, chrysanthemum, viola, pansy and others in bloom now and available for your landscape. For the most part, these plants will give color until we have frost. Bulbs, like seeds, are a test of a true gardener. A gardener must have the faith to plant in the fall and to look forward to color in the spring and summer next year. Many bulbs are available for planting this fall and you can select varieties for blooming from the early crocus which can be seen peeking out in February, the mid spring daffodils, to the late spring tulips and iris. There are many different varieties of bulbs, which will allow you a continuous spring show. Experiment a little and try something new. Spring bulbs pop up when you don't expect them and give you a little gift of color at the time of the year when most people are weary of winter. Perennials are the gardener's gift that keeps on giving. If your perennials are crowded and have not been blooming well, then you may need to work with them. Autumn is the time for dividing and resetting most perennials. Dividing helps to rejuvenate older perennial plants, improving their health. Use this time to clean the perennial beds, cut back dead foliage and remove dead or diseased plantings. You can also add perennials to your garden this time of year, giving them the winter to become established, and looking forward to their display next season.

• Mulching Autumn means winter is not far away. You want to protect your plants from the cold weather that is coming and mulch is one good way to help them. Mulches conserve soil moisture, keep down weeds, reduce erosion, as well as protect plant roots. There are two basic types of mulches, organic and inorganic. Organic mulches are made from plant materials and with time will decompose and become part of the soil. Inorganic mulches tend to stay in place, usually do not harbor weeds, and do not contribute organic matter to your soil. Most people use organic mulches such as bark, wood chips, and pine needles. You should apply mulch evenly to a maximum depth of 2 to 3 inches, making sure to keep the mulch away from the trunk or stem of the plants about one inch to avoid damaging the plant or causing disease. Organic mulches may need to be replenished yearly as they decompose, but make sure you don't let the mulch depth build up greater than 4 inches.

Now armed with this information, you are ready to begin your autumn gardening. The Chesapeake office of Virginia Cooperative Extension has brochures and informational packets available, which cover each of these topics in detail. Give our office a call at 382-6348, come by and see us in the Agriculture Department at 310 Shea Drive, or e-mail us at gardener@cityofchesapeake.net We will gladly provide you with the information you seek.

If you are a person with a disability and desire any assistive devices, services or other accommodations to participate in this activity, please contact the Chesapeake Extension staff at (757) 382-6348/TDD (800) 828-1120 during business hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. to discuss accommodations 5 days prior to the event.