Garden Center at Bannister Mall #3016

Fall is a different time for your garden and yard, so get out your work gloves, pole saws, and chainsaws. The focus shifts from growing to harvesting, from upkeep to cleanup. We've got fall lawn tips to help you make the most of your landscaping and garden as the season ends. We'll also guide you through planting and harvest. Depending on your climate, you might be able to garden throughout the chillier months. Read on for more on fall lawn and garden maintenance.

Patch or Fertilize Your Lawn
Repair bald spots on your lawn by overseeding them. Autumn is a great time to fill in brown, dead, or bare places in your yard. However, be mindful of fallen leaves on freshly seeded areas. New grass seed needs water, air, and sun to grow, and leaf litter can block out the sunlight and air it needs to germinate.

If you're in a northern climate, prepare your cool-season grass for the fall with lawn fertilizer. Aerate your lawn before fertilizing to get those nutrients down near the roots right off the bat. An edger gives extra polish to the perimeter of your yard. Water your cool-season lawn regularly and tend to any pesky fall weeds that show up. Warm-season varieties, like those in the southern states, are winding down their growth for the year. It's better not to fertilize it now, as you don't want fresh grass growing right before it goes dormant. Taper down watering on warm-season lawns.

Fall Planting
Fall planting is often overlooked, but autumn is the perfect time to get additional flowers in your garden. Chrysanthemums, often just called "mums," provide a beautiful pop of fall color. Find them in shades of white, pink, purple, orange, red, and yellow. You might also choose some marigolds for red, orange, and yellow blooms that last until the first frost, or longer if you shield them. Remember to explore the wide variety of fall plant and flower options.

Shrubs and succulents often flower in the fall, especially if they're kept in pots or already well-established in the ground. Succulent planters allow for easier upkeep of sensitive succulents. Customize the soil to fit these desert plants, as they need a sandy succulent soil mixture.

For shrubs, look after the ones you've got or plant new ones, weather permitting. Get in new plants now, especially if you're in a warmer climate and have time before the frost and cold comes. If you use retaining wall blocks to accent or surround your garden, try giving a finished look with rubber mulch. It'll overwinter well and resist fading longer than other mulches.

Cut and Cover Perennials
In climates where you might have a cold snap here and there, but then it'll warm up above freezing again, cover your plants. Protect your garden from frost and freeze damage to extend their season. You can get extra life out of your garden by covering your plants with buckets, tarps, or even painting drop cloths. It'll warm your plants like a blanket or greenhouse, and they'll survive a frost.

This works well early on, until you're fully into the colder parts of the season. Uncover the plants in the morning when it warms up again and let them enjoy that autumn sunshine. Once the temperatures regularly dip below freezing, bid a fond farewell to the garden for the rest of the year.

Put the Garden to Bed
When your annuals start looking rougher, dig up the plants. Northern climates that get cold earlier in the fall might be putting the garden to bed for the season in October or November, while warmer climates might wait until November or December. After your vegetable plants have given their final harvest, dig them up, then chop and dispose of the dead plant debris. You can let them return their nutrients to the earth, but there are two exceptions: if your plants dealt with disease or if you had a snail problem.

After you've removed the old plants, you've got a clean slate. Prepare your garden bed for the spring by rotating the soil with a shovel or renting a rototiller. You want to send the topsoil down, bring up the deeper soil, and loosen the earth. It helps nutrients penetrate and lets the soil rest. It's also an excellent opportunity to test the soil and see what, if any, soil amendments you need. Different crops and plants use different nutrients. Test your soil to see if it's balanced or if you ought to restore certain nutrients that have been depleted.

Bring Delicate Plants Indoors
Gardeners with potted plants can extend their growing season by bringing the plants indoors to a sunny window. Indoor gardening allows both outdoor plants to live longer and house plants to bring joy into your home. Just make sure they get enough water, and turn them regularly to give all leaves equal sunlight. Be sure to add dishes beneath the pots to catch any extra water if they don't have built-in overflow dishes.

Warm the Outdoors with a Fire Pit
Stretch out your fall evenings with a fire pit, patio heater, or outdoor fireplace to take off the chill. No matter if you're looking for outdoor heaters for decks, small patios, or cozy porches, we've got options. All you have to do is pick the one that matches your decor style.

We've got fire bowls and fire pit tables ready to warm your outdoor space. Check out stylish propane and natural gas fire pits in a variety of shapes. We've also got woodburning fire pits and the firewood to stoke them. You can even build your own with fire pit kits or make it completely custom and build an in-ground fire pit to fit your vision with pavers that lead to and surround the pit. Stop by your closest garden center to see what's in stock.

Ease Into Autumn
This fall, tidy up your lawn and garden with us. We have the tools and supplies you need for putting the garden to bed, leaf cleanup, and restoring nutrients to your soil so it's ready for next spring. Shop our wide variety of outdoor living products and fall garden care in your Bannister Mall store, online, or in our mobile app.