There’s nothing as pretty as your garden in the bloom of spring and summer. Everything is bright, colorful, and maybe even delicious!
Sadly, nothing lasts forever, and with the changing season, your garden must change too.
As soon as the fall season looms around the corner, you’ll need to change your methods and plants. That’s why understanding fall gardening is an essential skill for any gardener.
It can help you keep your garden beautiful and bountiful long into the cool weather. So, what’s fall gardening, you ask? Let’s find out!
Preparing Your Garden for Fall
So, September is coming soon, and autumn is about to arrive with its cool winds and biting weather. What does that mean for your garden? Well, it means two important things:
1 – Cleaning up Summer Plants
Remove dead or dying ones from the garden beds as your summer plants fade away.
These plants can harbor pests and diseases that might cause problems for other plants next growing season.
Use garden shears to cut plants at the base, leaving the roots in the soil if they’re healthy. The roots will eventually break down, adding organic matter to the soil.
Also, if there are any late-season vegetables or fruits still on plants, harvest them before pulling up the plants. Some crops, like tomatoes or peppers, can continue ripening indoors.
2 – Preparing the Soil
After clearing your garden bed, it’s time to amend the soil to prepare it for fall gardening.
Spread a layer of compost or well-rotted manure over the soil surface and gently push it into the top few inches of the soil.
Also, if you can access fallen leaves, shred them and add them to the soil. Leaves are an excellent source of organic matter and help improve soil fertility as they break down.
Choosing Your Fall Plants
As the temperature drops and the days get shorter, your garden can still be vibrant and productive. However, this is only possible with a couple of tricks.
Here’s what we can tell you:
1 – Plant Cool-Weather Veggies
Did you know some plants simply love the cold weather? It’s true! For instance, kale is one of the hardiest greens, thriving in cool temperatures and even improving in flavor after a light frost!
There’s also spinach, which grows quickly and is well-suited to fall planting. Broccoli is also a cool-season crop that does well in fall gardens.
You can also plant carrots, which thrive in cool soil and develop some of their past flavors in fall!
2 – Add Fall-Blooming Flowers
For those who still dream of a vibrant garden in the middle of all the browning and yellowing leaves, there’s an answer for you!
To start, you can plant mums (chrysanthemums)! These are the quintessential fall flowers, known for their vibrant colors and long-lasting blooms.
There are also asters, which bloom in late summer and fall and leave you with daisy-like flowers in shades of purple, blue, pink, and white.
Finally, you can plant pansies, which are cool-weather favorites and can be planted in fall to provide color until the first hard frost!
3 – Get Ahead of Winter
While your garden may still thrive in the fall, it can be pretty challenging to maintain in winter. It’s also a lot of work to make it appealing again for next spring.
The answer to this problem? It’s adding bulbs for spring! One of the best times to add flowering bulbs to your garden is during fall before the snow hits the soil.
These buds will bloom beautifully come spring, leaving your garden as beautiful as ever. Some of the best bulbs you can use are tulips, which are classic spring flowers known for their bright colors.
There are also daffodil bulbs, known for being early bloomers, announcing the arrival of spring! Crocuses are also among the first flowers to bloom in spring, often appearing while there’s still snow on the ground!
Final Thoughts
When the days get shorter and September comes to an end, don’t fret! Fall gardening can help you make the best of your garden even when the temperature drops.
Start by clearing up the old summer plants in your garden that won’t endure the fall season, and adjust the soil by adding mulch and nutrients.
Later, plant the right crops by growing cold-resistant plants that thrive in autumn to ensure your garden is beautiful and productive.
A tip for the future is to plant spring bulbs during this season. It makes for a magnificent sight the following spring!
Growing up with a mom who filled her home (inside and out) with all sorts of plants, Lisa got her start in gardening at a young age. Living now on her own with a home and yard full of plants (including an indoor greenhouse), she shares all the gardening tips she’s gained over the years.