September Gardening Activities - Region 3

September Gardening Activities – Region 3

Northeast, Midwest and Central Plains Gardens

States in this region include: Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, New York, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Ohio, West Virginia, Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Iowa, South Dakota, North Dakota and Montana.

  • Remember, there's more to fall blooms than just chrysanthemums. Looking for something a little unusual? Japanese anemone is a beautiful fall bloomer worth looking for.
  • Prepare your outdoor-summering houseplants for their return indoors. Do a careful inspection of all plants before they come back into your home, so you don't bring any unwanted multi-legged pests indoors!
  • Create new interest to the fall perennial garden with ornamental grasses. Color, texture and sound are a few of the wonderful attributes that grasses bring to the landscape. The show won't end in fall either - grasses continue their attraction during the gray winter months by adding color and winter respite for small wildlife.
  • Retire your tired-looking, heat-exhausted summer plants to the compost pile (without any guilt). They've served you and your garden well, but now it's time to bring back the pizzazz with fall-loving beauties like ornamental cabbage, kale and peppers! These cool-weather annuals (and more) do wonders in containers, as well as in landscape beds and borders - their uses are many!
  • Buy your bulbs early! Remember all those daffodils that you admired in your neighbor's garden this past spring? Experienced gardeners buy their spring-flowering bulbs - like daffodils, tulips, crocus and hyacinths - now for planting later in October. Avoid having a disappointing selection come planting time by buying what you want now, while the selection is good. Select bulbs that are firm, not soft or mushy.
  • Add new evergreens to your property, whether as screening or privacy or as an additional foundation planting around your home. The cooler temperatures of fall are ideal for these types of plants. Rhododendrons, hollies and yews (and more) should all be available at your local garden center for instant results. (Remember to always water all new plantings well!)
  • Pay close attention to the weather forecasts for predictions of early frosts, and be prepared to adjust your gardening practices accordingly. The typical first frost of the season is an average date - it could be surprisingly earlier or even later. Don't get caught with your plants down! Harvest your remaining produce and protect your tender plants before that first frost hits.
  • Resist the temptation to fertilize perennials, roses, trees and shrubs. Why? Fertilizing those plants now will stimulate new growth that won't harden off before winter. (It's better to wait to fertilize them until they're completely dormant or until next spring.) On the flip side, do fertilize your lawn. (Always follow package directions.) After a long, stressful summer, cool-season grasses are beginning to enjoy the return of cooler weather, so give them a much needed boost.
  • Tackle your less-than-desirable lawn. (The wait is over!) Cooler temperatures and the hopeful return of fall rains make this an ideal month to either start a new lawn or repair an established one.
  • Get ready to feed the birds. Clean and ready birdfeeders for the beginning of the long feeding season - from now until natural food becomes available to our feathered friends again late next spring.
  • Keep scouting your fall kitchen garden for veggie pests!
  • Come to The Garden Party and share your gardening adventures with other home gardeners around the country. Post pictures of your garden, write a blog, or ask expert green thumbs for more help, tips or suggestions on how to enhance your outdoor living experience.
Rudbeckia Indian Summer

Key Issues for September

  • Finally - the season is almost over for any last lingering chinch bugs in home lawns. As the weather cools, so will their appetites. If you've still got an infestation problem, carefully treat with a fast-acting recommended insecticide according to label directions.
  • Powdery mildew has done its damage for the season, possibly leaving your plants covered with a white film. It's too late to spray now. Your next step: Do a thorough cleanup of all infected garden plants. Good sanitation is critical!
  • Tackling turfgrass pests is a grubby job! If your lawn has a serious grub infestation and you haven't already taken care of the problem, treat your grub problem - and lawn - carefully with a recommended insecticide. Late summer through early fall is the ideal time to go to war against these pests. As always, be sure to carefully read and follow all label directions for proper, safe use.
  • Be on the lookout for stinging insects! Bees, wasps and hornets make their ugly presence known this time of the year.