Greater Rome Times

There are lots of things you can do this month to keep your lawn and garden looking nice:

Lawns

Keep newly planted Fescue mowed and watered as needed.

Do not fertilize warm season grasses such as Centipede, Bermuda or St. Augustine.

Trees and Shrubs

Continue planting. Transplant shrubs now if necessary. Remember that newly planted trees and shrubs need water, even in the winter. Check periodically with your finger or a moisture meter. The root ball should remain evenly moist, but not wet.

As leaves fall, shred and use as mulch or make a compost pile. Don’t let your leaves leave home!

Flowers

Continue planting perennials.

In established beds, add a half-inch or so of compost or chopped leaves. Leave “breathing room” around the crown of your plants.

When frost comes, remove blackened vegetation and compost it.

Plant Pansies, Violas, Flowering Cabbage, Kale, Snapdragons and Dianthus early in the month.

Plant flower bulbs beginning mid-month.

Fruits and Vegetables

Make notes about what varieties did well or poorly.

Harvest fall crops.

Remove spent vegetation to prevent spreading insects or disease. If diseased, remove from your garden and put in the trash. The rest should go in your compost pile.

Don’t leave the soil bare. Plant a cover crop such as Austrian Winter Peas or Annual Rye, or cover in chopped leaves or compost.

Copyright: Daryl Pulis