October Tips & Fall Plantings

Plant fall-flowering bulbs and fall annual and perennials towards the end of the month including daffodils and grape hyacinths. Plant cool-season annuals such as pansies, pinks (Dianthus), snapdragons, and flowering cabbage and kale now that temperatures have dropped.

It's okay to purchase tulips and Dutch hyacinths now, but refrigerate them at 45 degrees until mid-December. Trees and shrubs planted now will be established with a good root system before next summer. Finish transplanting spring-flowering perennials.

Mulch your beds with shredded or chipped bark mulch to keep in soil moisture and reduce temperature fluctuation during the winter months.

Containers: Fill them with a burst of color from kale, mums, pansies, snapdragons and dusty miller for contrast. Also add a trailing vine such as English ivy to spill over the edge and soften the look. You can also add crotons which will last until the first near-freezing temps.

Trim dead limbs from shade trees while they are easily seen. If you're trying to bring hibiscus, bougainvilleas and other tropical plants indoors for the winter, trim them back first. Trim spent flower stalks. Dead head (remove) brown flower heads, dead leaves or stalks and seed pods on perennials and fall annuals to promote blooms.

Fertilize container plants with a balanced fertilizer. Fertilize your lawn early in the month. Fertilize new plantings with a water soluble mixture. Withhold fertilizer from any container you plan to bring into your home for the winter months.

Continue to mow your lawn to maintain healthy growth. Do not scalp or change blade height.

Disease Control: If you see a lot of grubs in the yard, treat with Merit. Watch out for brown patch in St. Augustine grass; apply appropriate fungicide. Also be aware of cinch bug invasion. Pull out a sample of grass and put it in some water; do you see the little critters float to the top?

Irrigation: Water in the morning; not the evening. Reduce the quantity of water for the cooler temperatures and lower evaporation rate.