Garden Center at Sterling Park #4602

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

Plant Flower Bulbs
If you've got your eye on bulb plants that greet the springtime sun, 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, some bulb flowers, like freesias, should be planted in spring instead. Plan your tulip, iris, and daffodil displays now. Garlic and onions can go in, too, for next spring'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.

Skip the soil amendments when planting garlic or onion bulbs instead of flower bulbs. Simply plant them now, pointy-side up, and you'll have a fresh harvest by next summer. These plants will spread though, so be careful not to let them flower, dry out, and go to seed when they mature. Snip off the dried flowers to avoid planting a field of volunteer onion and garlic plants.

Cut and Cover Perennials
In climates where you might have a cold snap but 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 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 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 autumn sun. Once the temperatures regularly dip below freezing, say goodbye to the garden for the rest of the year.

Put the Garden to Bed
When the sun angle changes and your annuals start looking rougher, it's time to dig up the plants. Northern climates 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 vegetables and annuals are done for the year, dig them up and dispose of the detritus, or dead plant debris. Feel free to let them decay to enrich the soil unless you had one of two exceptions: if your plants dealt with disease or if you had a slug problem.

For gardens overrun with slugs and snails or if your plants struggled with disease, put the deceased plants in a lawn and leaf bag for disposal. You don't want to bring the disease or snails to next year's garden. However, if you have a compost heap, feel free to add the slug-riddled plant parts there.

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 loosen the earth so the topsoil goes down and the deeper soil comes up. It lets the soil rest and helps nutrients penetrate. 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 restore certain nutrients that have been depleted.

Indoor Gardening
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 those leaves equal sunlight for photosynthesis. If the pots don't have built-in overflow dishes, be sure to add shallow bowls beneath them 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 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, shore up your lawn and garden for the season 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 fall garden care and outdoor living products in your local store, online, or in our mobile app.