Garden Center at Corona #601

On a fresh fall day, take advantage of the weather to do a second round of planting and outdoor maintenance. Now is a great time to get fall flowers and flower bulbs in the ground. Neaten up your bushes and trees, too, with chainsaws and pole saws. Read on for more on fall garden maintenance, fall planting, and how to transition to your fall lawn and garden.

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

If your lawn is in good shape, make sure it stays that way by applying lawn fertilizer if you have cool-season grass. Aerate your lawn before fertilizing to get those nutrients down near the roots quickly. An edger gives extra polish to the perimeter of your yard. Water your cool-season lawn regularly and tend to any pesky weeds that show up. It'll need different maintenance than warm-season grass, which goes dormant as the weather cools. Taper down watering on warm-season lawns.

Plant Flower Bulbs
If you've got your eye on spring-blooming bulb plants, get those planted soon. They need time to grow downward. Check your plant hardiness zone before planting. In colder climates, some bulb flowers, like freesias, should be planted in spring instead. Plan your daffodil, tulip, and iris displays now. Garlic and onions can go in, too, for next year's harvest, but they won't need soil additives.

Try using retaining wall blocks to accent or surround your garden. A beautiful garden wall or hardscaping gives a finished look, especially when you spread a layer of rubber mulch. It'll overwinter just fine and look new longer than bark chips or other mulches that fade with weathering.

Encourage the bulb roots to grow deep by sprinkling bone meal in the surrounding soil before you plant the flowers. Only apply the recommended amount and follow the instructions on the package. If you don't, you may end up with a tulip plant with one gigantic leaf and no blooms, for example.

There are cases where you can skip the bone meal entirely and use something else. If you've already got exceptionally healthy soil that's full of nutrient-rich compost, just plant the flower bulbs. Superphosphate is an option if your dog tries to dig up the bulbs because the bone meal smells good to them. It's also wise to use the phosphate if your property has raccoons, squirrels, or mice who may, like your pets, want to dig up the bone meal and bulbs for a tasty snack.

Cut and Cover Perennials
In climates where you might have a cold snap but then warm up above freezing, cover your plants. Protect your garden from freeze and frost damage to extend their season. You can get extra life out of your garden by covering your plants with tarps, 5-gallon buckets, or even painting drop cloths. It'll warm your plants like a greenhouse or blanket, and they'll survive a frost.

This works well when the weather is still transitional, until you're fully into the colder parts of the season. Uncover the plants when the thermometer goes up again and let them enjoy that fall sun. Once the temperatures regularly dip below freezing, bid a fond farewell to the garden for now.

Put the Garden to Bed
When your annuals start looking rougher, dig up the plants. Northern climates that get cold earlier in the fall may be putting the garden to bed for the season in October or November. After your annuals are done blooming for the year, dig them up, then chop and dispose of the detritus, or dead plant debris. Feel free to let them decompose to enrich the soil unless you had one of two exceptions: if your plants dealt with blight or if you had a snail problem.

After you've removed the old plants, you have 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 need to add certain nutrients that have been depleted.

Bring Potted Plants Indoors
Gardeners with potted plants can extend their growing season by bringing delicate 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 turn them regularly to give all the leaves equal sunlight for photosynthesis, and make sure they get enough water now that they won't benefit from rainfall. 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 an Outdoor Fireplace
Stretch out your fall evenings with a fire pit, outdoor fireplace, or patio heater 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 find 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, shore up your yard for the season with us. We have the tools you need for putting the garden to bed, leaf cleanup, and replenishing nutrients in your soil so it's ready for next spring. Shop our wide variety of fall garden care and outdoor living products in your local store, online, or in our mobile app.