Fall is here!
In the Garden
- Get your garden beds ready for fall planting.
- Amend soil for planting with Lobster Compost. It adds nutrients, improves drainage, and breaks up clay, making it easier to establish new plants.
- Use Preen to prevent weeds in your garden beds.
- Cool-season veggies are here, so make sure your raised beds are ready.
- Refresh existing soil with Lobster Compost to replenish nutrients that were used up last year.
- For new beds, fill with Coast of Maine Raised Bed Soil, a pre-made soil for raised bed gardening that eliminates the need to make your own. It’s organic and can also be used in containers.
- If you’d prefer to make your own soil, we recommend a ratio of 40% topsoil, 40% compost, and the remaining 20% a mixture of vermiculite, peat moss, and organic matter such as manure and earthworm castings.
- The growing season for herbs is coming to a close, so make sure you’re harvesting as much of your herbs as possible.
- If you’re finding that you are ending up with more herbs than you can use immediately, click here for our guide to drying and freezing your herbs.
- Cool-season annuals like pansies, violas, snapdragons, ornamental cabbage, and kale will be arriving any day. Pull summer annuals to make space for them.
- Now’s the time to get fall bulbs like daffodils, tulips, alliums, and hyacinths in the ground for spring blooms.
- Save yourself a little work by planting your bulbs and cool-season annuals together so you have blooms all the way through spring!
- Don’t forget the fertilizer!
- Dynamite is a slow-release fertilizer that feeds for up to 9 months.
- FlowerTone is an organic fertilizer, perfect for all flowering plants.
- PlantTone is a wonderful all-purpose fertilizer for all your plants, and it’s organic too!
- Check for potential pest problems. We may be getting cooler, but pests haven’t gone dormant just yet. Fungal problems will be less of a concern as we move further into the month, but early October can still be hot and humid, so keep your eyes peeled for any potential problems!
- Neem Oil is an organic triple-action control (insects, fungus & mites) that is safe to use on edibles as well as ornamentals.
- Captain Jack’s Dead Bug Brew is an organic insect control that works on several insect varieties.
- Copper Fungicide is a tough, organic fungal control that clears up several common fungal problems.
For the Landscape
Fall is the best time for planting! Air temperatures will start getting lower, which means less stress on new plants, but the soil is still warm for summer, which is great for root development.
- Use Lobster Compost to amend soil, and Root Stimulant to help roots acclimate and help prevent transplant shock when planting.
- If you have issues with Voles, protect new plants by using mesh Vole Bags to keep the roots safe.
- New trees and shrubs are still arriving, and most of them will have fall interest (like colorful fall foliage, berries, or beautiful flowers)
- While temperatures are still on the warmer side, pests will still be out and about in your garden and landscape. Check plants regularly for signs of problems; it’s easier to control problems if they’re caught early.
- Neem Oil is an organic triple-action control (insects, fungus & mites) that is safe to use on edibles as well as ornamentals.
- Rose Shield is also a triple-action product that’s a bit stronger than Neem Oil, however, it is not recommended for use on edibles.
- Rose RX is a systemic insect control that provides up to 6 weeks of protection. It’s an excellent choice if you have a plant that gets the same pest/disease problem each year around the same time.
- Eight Insect Control is a strong insecticide that can kill over 140 types of insects.’
- Early October can still be hot and humid, so fungal issues are still a possibility. Like pests, fungal problems are easier to control when they’re caught early, so check regularly.
- Copper Fungicide is an organic fungal control that treats multiple fungal problems, including Powdery Mildew and Leaf Spot. It is safe for use on edibles as well.
- As they are both triple-action actions, Neem Oil and Rose Shield are excellent choices for many fungal problems as well.
- If you had fungal issues on any deciduous plants this year, we recommend cleaning up fallen leaves before they decompose, so any potential fungal spores don’t remain to resurface next year.
- It’s not recommended to fertilize your trees and shrubs at this point in the year; they’ll be going dormant soon and won’t need the nutrients until spring.
- Mulch around your plants. Mulch helps retain moisture. It also insulates root systems, protecting plants from freezes during winter.
In the Lawn
Depending on what kind of grass you have, there are a few different things that might need to be done for your lawn this time of year.
- Cool Season
- October is a great time for lawn seeding! The air temperatures are cooler but the soil is still warm to encourage germination.
- Feed new and over-seeded lawns with Jonathan Green Seeding & Sodding Fertilizer to give new grass the nutrients it needs to fill in quickly and strongly.
- If you seeded last month, you can apply your second fall fertilization with Jonathan Green Veri-Green Fertilizer.
- If weeds are cropping up in your new or over-seeded lawn, you’ll need to wait before applying any weed controls.
- On average, you should wait until you’ve mowed new grass 3-4 times before applying any weed controls. Using them any earlier can harm delicate, young grass.
- Warm Season
- Don’t seed or sod with warm-season grass right now; there’s not enough time for it to root in before it goes dormant. Wait until spring, when soil temperatures are at least 65° or warmer.
- You can continue your battle against weeds by applying Bonide Weed Beater Ultra or Jonathan Green Lawn Weed Control as needed, according to the instructions on the bag. Keep an eye on temperature limitations, as some chemicals don’t work or can cause damage at certain temperatures.
For Your Pond
Ponds are about to go dormant for winter, so there’s not a whole lot to do until spring startup.
- If you have deciduous trees near your pond, put up netting to catch falling leaves so they
- Keep an eye on water temperatures. Once they drop below 60°, switch your fish food to a Spring & Fall Food, which fish can digest faster.
- Once temperatures drop below 50°, stop feeding entirely.