October Garden Tasks
Refresh This Fall
We've had a long, hot summer and fall is bringing cooler temperatures, along with the perfect opportunity to put something new in the ground and refresh for the new season. Cooler temperatures allow new plants to establish themselves by developing strong, healthy roots needed to thrive during our hot Sacramento summers. Browse our fall planting ideas which include updating container plantings, new and improved lawns, cover crops, and a few other garden tasks that can be checked-off this month.
Update Container Plantings
It's been a long, hot summer and your container plantings are probably in need of an update. Refresh containers, borders, and beds with colorful cool-season annuals that will bloom all winter. Choose from assorted colors of pansies, violas, Iceland poppies, snapdragons, calendula, and more. Consider a combination of perennials or evergreen shrubs that provide year-round appeal, surrounded by annuals that can be updated and changed out with each season.
Visit the Pumpkin Patch at our nurseries and select your favorites from all shapes, sizes, and colors of pumpkins. Complement with chrysanthemums, corn stalks, and straw bales to celebrate fall.
Spend Time With Your Lawn
Temperatures are lowering and our lawns are looking forward to some extra attention after the heat of summer. A few key changes in maintenance can greatly reduce problems and make your lawn happier all year long.
Fertilize your lawn this fall with GreenAll® Fall and Winter Feed. It offers a formulation of nitrogen that performs well in cold weather to help with greening. In addition, the phosphorus and potassium levels in this mix will encourage strong, healthy root growth during the winter and the overall performance of the plant
functions—setting your lawn up for a successful spring.
Adjust your irrigation clock according to the weather. Proper watering reduces the chance that your lawn will develop fungal issues. And be sure to turn it off on rainy days.
Fertilize your lawn this fall with GreenAll® Fall and Winter Feed. It offers a formulation of nitrogen that performs well in cold weather to help with greening. In addition, the phosphorus and potassium levels in this mix will encourage strong, healthy root growth during the winter and the overall performance of the plant
functions—setting your lawn up for a successful spring.
Adjust your irrigation clock according to the weather. Proper watering reduces the chance that your lawn will develop fungal issues. And be sure to turn it off on rainy days.
To prevent disease, rake leaves and debris that accumulate on your lawn. The leaves you collect can be repurposed into compost.
Sow Cover Crops
If you're not planting a winter vegetable garden, consider sowing cover crops to maintain healthy soil.
Cover crops, like buckwheat or clover, will feed and improve your soil over the winter. This ancient practice also smothers weeds, invites beneficial pollinators and adds nitrogen to your garden soil.
Still thinking about a cool-season veggie garden? There's still plenty of time. Check out our Veggie Planting Calendar for the best times to start from seeds or plant starts.
Other Tasks For October
- Grow some greens! Plant lettuce, beets, carrots, kale, broccoli, peas, spinach, and more. View our Veggie Planting Calendar.
- Check irrigation systems and adjust as the temperature changes.
- Plant bulbs—make sure your crocus, tulips and hyacinths are refrigerated six weeks prior to planting.
- Take advantage of cooler nights and warm soil temperatures, perfect for planting tree and shrubs.
- Rebuild your compost supply with green waste gathered from your garden. Read Composting 101.
- Sow Hedgerow Farms wildflower seeds. Winter rains will establish the seeds for spring blooms.
- Be on the lookout for slugs and snails. Hand pick slugs, then apply Monterey Sluggo® to protect plants.
