Cover crops are a great option for late fall and early winter. Sometimes called green manures, cover crops help to protect your soil from issues like erosion and becoming too compact during times when it would normally just be sitting around fallow (unused). Better yet a good crop cover will additionally provide extra enrichment to your soil as it protect. Cover crops also keep out excess weeds.
Cool season cover crops are often sown in the fall – fava beans, annual rye grass and crimson clover are some common cover choices. Planting these means you intend to mow or til them …read more

November is no time to rest up while your garden tasks go undone. Many places have seen their first frost, others soon will plus there’s plenty of tasks to consider that have zero to do with frost, so if you’re behind keep up with these general gardening tasks.

If you haven’t protected plants from frost you need to jump on that. Gauzy floating row covers protect plants but allow light, air and moisture in. If you have prized plants bales of hay placed around said plants provide a thicker layer of protection. You’ll also need to mulch more. Mound up mulch …read more

Autumn is my favorite season. I love the colors, I like the rain, I even like when autumn turns super gray for weeks on end (blame it on an Oregon upbringing). However, many people get a little fussy about the gray, rain, and clouds. There are lots of non-gray times in the fall but a couple of long rainy weekends and some people start wishing there was more color around. If you garden, you can add some pops of color that will brighten even super gray days.
Check with your local extension office to learn about the best colorful plants for …read more

Today we’ve got some end of summer gardening tips from W. Atlee Burpee & Co. More specifically tips about how you can cultivate a successful last-minute autumn vegetable garden. Many assume that it’s actually getting close to too late to plant a fall garden, but George Ball, chairman of W. Atlee Burpee & Co. notes that “Folks who may be running short on time to plant their fall kitchen gardens shouldn’t be discouraged… With proper planning,the turn-around time for fall produce can be as early as 60 days or less.”
These are excellent tips for folks who missed out on a …read more

Planting bulbs in autumn seems magical come spring when your new tulips, daffodils or hyacinth flowers pop up, but it’s not all magic, you will actually have to plan for successful fall bulb planting.

First of all, plan for your location. Many bulb planting tips (such as the ones below) will apply as a general rule, but you can’t beat local know-how. A local nursery can help you plan for the best bulb planting adventure or check out the Netherlands Flower Bulb Information Center/ North America to learn about planting bulbs in your region.

Plant in the fall anytime before the first …read more

Some plants or crops can be planted and established in the summer and you can overwinter them during the cooler seasons. Overwintering simply means that you’re protecting your plants which will go fairly dormant and during winter see little growth but if you time it right the plants will hopefully showcase some rapid growth once spring arrives. Overwintering is an excellent way to get an earlier spring crop which means fresh salads earlier in the season.

Tips for a more successful overwintering include:
Before cool weather make sure that your garden plants are well established but not too mature. If you need …read more

So, it’s a wee early for autumn talk, but the crispy fall weather will come all too soon so it’s good to plan ahead. Here’s are some general tips about what you can do in the fall to create a thriving garden.

Tree planting – this is a great time of year to plant trees. Typically you want to be sure to plant evergreen trees about six weeks before a rough, hard freeze. This is also a good time to plant deciduous trees. You can plant deciduous trees at any time, but it’s nice to pick out your favorites in the …read more