Fall is here. The weather’s cooling, and it’s a great time to add plants and trees to your garden. Here are a few October gardening tips to keep your yard looking beautiful.
PLANT, PLANT, PLANT
Fall is a great time for planting native plants and trees, perennials, cool season annuals and many bulbs. This gives the roots time to get well established before next summer’s heat. Hold off on tropical and sub-tropical plants though. They will be happier going in the ground when the weather is warmer.
DIVIDE
Divide perennials that have grown too large or need rejuvenation. It’s best to do this when the weather is cooler so the divided plants aren’t too stressed. Replant your new divisions right away. Make sure you leave a healthy supply of roots on each divided section of plant and partially cut back foliage.
Good choices for dividing are Shasta daisies, daylilies, alstroemerias, clivia, agapanthus, fortnight lily and iris. You can also divide yarrow, African daisy, gazanias, ivy geraniums and dianthus.
FORCE PAPERWHITES
You can force paperwhite bulbs to bloom over the holidays for beautiful and fragrant festive flowers. Choose healthy, firm bulbs. Fill a container halfway with soil, gravel or stones and set the bulbs inside, pointed-end up. Then add more of the potting medium until it’s high enough that just the tips of the bulbs are showing. Water the container so it’s moist, but not soggy. Keep the container in a cool, bright location. Once roots appear, keep the water level just below the base of the bulbs. You should have flowers within five to six weeks.
Paperwhites also like our weather in San Diego County and are easy to grow outdoors. Mine start blooming right around Christmas and fill the yard with their sweet scent. For more information about paperwhites and other bulbs for your yard, take a look at August Gardening Tips.
A lot of information for October Gardening Tips 2019 comes from the Master Gardener Association of San Diego County. They are a great resource for all of your gardening needs including planting, pests, vegetables, and water use. They even have a free hotline where you can get your home gardening and pest control problems answered.