Garden Center at Forest Lane #598

When a crisp day breezes in, hinting at the seasonal change, take advantage of it to do outdoor maintenance. Bushes and trees need a trim with a chainsaw as they're slowing growth for the season. Leaf maintenance is likely a concern, so check out rakes, leaf bags, and blowers. Be sure to get a wheelbarrow and buckets to contain a bountiful fall harvest. You may even be able to garden throughout fall and into winter, if you'd like. Read on to learn how to transition to your fall lawn and garden.

Fertilize or Patch Your Lawn
Patch 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, sun, and air to grow, and leaf litter can block out the air and sunlight 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 adding fertilizer to get the most bang for your buck. 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.

Get Bulb Plants in the Ground
If you've got your eye on springtime tulips and daffodils, plant them soon. Although their roots look different because they sprout from bulbs and not just below the stem, they still need time to grow downward. Check your plant hardiness zone before planting. In colder climates, certain bulb flowers, like freesias, should be planted in spring instead. Find ideas for spring flowering bulbs and plan your daffodil, tulip, and iris displays now. Onions and garlic can go in, too, for a harvest next spring or summer, but they won't need soil additives.

Encourage the bulb roots to grow deep by sprinkling bone meal in the surrounding soil before you plant the flowers. Follow the instructions on the package and do not apply more than recommended. If you do add more, you may end up with a tulip plant with one or two gigantic leaves and no flowers, for example.

There are a few instances where you can skip soil amendments or add one that's not bone meal. If you've already got exceptionally healthy soil that's full of rich nutrients and 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 smart to use phosphate if your property has squirrels, mice, or raccoons who may, like your pets, want to dig up the bulbs and bone meal for a snack.

Cut and Cover Perennials
In climates where you might have a cold snap and then 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 5-gallon buckets, tarps, or even painting drop cloths. It'll warm your plants like a greenhouse, and they'll survive a frost. Read other fall-planted perennial tips, too.

This works well early on, 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, it's time to 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 may be putting the garden to bed for the season in October or November. After your vegetable plants have yielded a final harvest, dig them up, then chop and dispose of the dead plant debris. You can let them return their nutrients to the soil, but there are two exceptions: if your plants dealt with disease or if you had a slug 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 rototiller or shovel. You want to bring the deeper soil to the surface, send the topsoil lower down, and generally break up the ground. 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 indoor plants to bring joy into your home. Just make sure they get enough water, and rotate them regularly to give all leaves equal sunlight for photosynthesis. Remember to place decorative dishes beneath them if the pots don't have built-in overflow dishes to catch any extra water.

Warm the Outdoors with a Fire Pit
Stretch out your fall evenings with a patio heater, fire pit, or outdoor fireplace to take off the chill. No matter if you're looking to heat a small patio, a cozy back porch, or a spacious deck, we've got options. All you have to do is discover the one that matches your decor style.

When you're curious about how to choose or build an outdoor fireplace, we have the supplies you need. Bricks, mortar, a wheelbarrow, trowels, and more — let us help you get this fall project from doing to done. If you'd love some extra heat but rather not install a fire pit or fireplace, we also have patio heaters, including gas, propane, and electric models.

Ease Into Fall
This fall, tidy up your plants and flowers with us. We've got everything 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 outdoor living products online, in your Forest Lane store, or in our mobile app.