Lawn and Garden Tips
Flowers
Hollyhock and Snapdragon leaves may start developing small, rusty spots on the underside of the leaves. This is a disease called rust and will eventually kill the plants. Remove infected plants as soon as they are noticed. Next year, plant something else or use Fertilome Liquid Systemic Fungicide before the problem appears.
September is the month to begin cleaning up any houseplants that have spent the summer outdoors. Fertilome Indoor/Outdoor Insect Spray or Bonide Eight will help clean up any hitchhikers like aphids or mites. Start early because it’s much easier to eliminate these pests outdoors, before the plants and their cargo are brought inside.
Tulips, daffodils, crocus and other fall planted bulbs have arrived in the garden center. You don’t need to wait for cooler weather to plant. If you must delay planting, store them in a cool dry location and make yourself a reminder so they won’t be forgotten. Be sure to water and mulch bulbs after planting.
Trees and Shrubs
Late summer and fall is a great time to plant trees, shrubs and perennials here in Colorado. Fall sales and cooler weather combine at just the right time for plants to establish before winter sets in, giving them a big head start for next spring. Try to get everything planted by mid-October (especially evergreens), mulch all your fall planted material to conserve moisture and winter water when it’s warm and dry.
Vegetables
Potatoes are ready to dig as soon as the foliage turns yellow and dies. They can be left in the ground as long as the weather remains dry. After digging, gently wash off any dirt, then spread the potatoes out on a table in the shade to cure the tender skins which helps them store better.
Tomato fruit will not turn red faster if the foliage is removed so the sun can hit the fruit. The green tomatoes will sunburn and be totally useless. Warm temperatures and patience will ripen the tomatoes when they’re good and ready. Ripen green tomatoes indoors in a warm room and away from direct sunlight.
Lawns
Fall is one of the best times for controlling perennial, broadleaf weeds in the lawn. Fertilome Weed Out containing Trimec will give the best results when applied well before freezing weather sets in.
Avoid pruning trees and shrubs until late February or early March, however, broken branches and dead wood should be removed immediately at any time of year.
Once trees and shrubs are leafless, apply a Dormant Oil or Scalecide to lilacs, green ash and aspen that are suffering from scale. Repeat next spring before the plants leaf out.
Protect new and delicate roses with a rose collar this winter to prevent winterkill of the top. Just set the collar over the rose and fill with a fluffy mulch. Wait until next spring to prune roses back.
Wrap young, thin barked trees with tree wrap in early December to prevent sunscald. Fruit trees, locust, maples and ashes are the most susceptible. Be sure to remove the wrap at Easter time.
Fall Pansies
Pansies planted during the early fall will reward you with masses of flowers during our cool Colorado fall and will keep blooming well into the winter months until hard, freezing weather slows them down. Then, even during the dead of winter, all it takes is a brief warm spell for them to send up a few cheery flowers to remind you that spring isn’t far away.
For a really spectacular show, combine pansies and spring flowering bulbs. Tulips, daffodils, crocus and hyacinths all look great with pansies and are all planted in the fall just like pansies.
Once the first frosts kill your annual plantings it’s time to plant. Prepare the soil by adding generous amounts of high quality, decomposed organic matter like Back to Nature Compost or peatmoss. Dig the organics into the soil deeply along with some superphosphate or bone meal for good root growth.
Now you’re ready to plant. Start by planting your bulbs, using only the largest, undamaged bulbs you can find. Always remember, with bulbs you get what you pay for. Bargain bulbs always lead to disappointment. Plant tulips, daffodils and hyacinths 4-5 inches apart in solid color clusters of 15-20 bulbs for the best show in the spring.
In front of the bulbs, or even over the top of them, plant your pansies. Pick the colors that are most appealing to you and plant them in large groups for the biggest impact. Once all the plants are in the ground, water everything deeply—especially the bulbs—and cover the beds with an attractive mulch to keep the soil moist through the winter. Both the pansies and the bulbs may need some extra hand watering during dry spells through the winter.
Fall planted pansies are perfectly adapted to our Colorado climate and make a wonderful, hardy addition to any landscape. Your flowerbeds of pansies and bulbs will be the bright islands of color all spring making you the envy of the neighborhood.
Dazzling Tulips
Ever since the 17th century, these flowers from the Middle East have bewitched gardeners. Their appeal lies in their disarmingly simple shape, kaleidoscope of colors and early blooming season.
The variety and color range of modern tulips is astounding. The shapes of the flowers vary as well, with some mimicking those of lilies, peonies and water lilies.
Tulips lend themselves to a number of garden uses. Some varieties are great repeaters in the perennial border. Others provide a bright and cheerful annual display. Still others brighten winter windowsills and spring patios in pots.
There are so many hybrids to choose from, in addition to the true species types, that they are organized by groups or classes. Among the earliest to bloom of all the tulip groups are the species, or rock garden tulips. These daredevils can start blooming as early as March. Most have short, stout stems that resist spring snows and frosts very well. Flowers are held low to the ground and out of the wind. This class would include Greiggii, Kaufmanniana and Fosteriana types as well as those referred to as species tulips. All are perfect companions with crocus, squill and grape hyacinths.
Next up are the Single Early and Triumph tulips. These guys bloom in early to mid April on medium tall stems that handle snow, frost and wind like champs. They are available in any color you can imagine and are great in combination with trumpet type daffodils and pansies. These two groups of tulip varieties are perfect for indoor forcing and are the best at perennializing outdoors.
By late April and early May, the Darwin Hybrids and early Peony type tulips are strutting their stuff. Taller stems and larger flowers make an impressive show when planted in large groups.
For old-fashioned beauty, nothing beats the Single Late, Cottage and Darwin types. Classic, goblet shaped flowers on tall, slender stems are perfect for the back of the perennial border and make great bouquets.
Finally, in late May, the latest flowering tulips begin their show. Lacy Fringed Tulips, feathery Parrot Tulips, and the gigantic Lily Flowered Tulips could be considered the Grand Finale of the tulip blooming season. The largest and most lavishly shaped and colored of all the tulip groups, these late varieties are real show stoppers outdoors in the border or in arrangements indoors.
Plant tulips anytime during the fall before the ground freezes. Deep soil preparation encourages longer-lived bulbs. Be sure to water new bulbs in thoroughly. A 2-3 inch deep mulch of woodchips will conserve moisture. There is no need to remove the mulch in the spring; the bulbs will push right through it.
Spring Flowering Bulbs in Outdoor Containers
Wouldn’t a few big pots of tulips and daffodils look great out on the porch in bloom? They can easily be removed as soon as the first flowers fade and replaced with a new pot of fresh bulbs.
Next, get some good quality Fertilome Potting Soil (not garden soil or top soil) to plant the bulbs in. Skimping on the soil never pays off. Bulbs need a loose, open soil that drains well and retains moisture. Place about 4 inches of soil in a pot then place your bulbs as close together as possible without jamming them in, then fill the pots to the rim with soil and water thoroughly. Choose varieties of bulbs that bloom in mid-season for the best results.
After planting, the pots can be stored for winter. If they are to be kept above ground, they can be stored in an attached garage or unheated enclosed porch. Better yet, bury them in the ground at soil level in the vegetable garden or an empty flowerbed. The pots will be gone before it’s time to plant out bedding plants. Cover the pots with at least 4 inches of bark mulch or 10 inches of straw and keep them watered.
As temperatures rise in the spring (about late March) uncover and dig up the pots and place them in a sunny area to promote strong, healthy growth. Once the bulbs start to show 3 or 4 inches of growth, the pots can be ‘plunged’ or planted in large decorative containers where you can enjoy watching them grow and bloom. Change out the pots as the flowers fade and plant the spent bulbs in a sunny location of the flower border to bloom again in a few years.