Fall Gardening - Fall Garden Tips - Fall
Garden Vegetables - Fall Tree Nutrition - Fall Fertilization - Fall Plant Frost Protection - Fall Garden
Care
How To Make The Most Of Your Fall Gardening Harvest
Your vegetable garden has supplied your family with flavorful, nutritious fare throughout
the summer. But the arrival of autumn 
doesn't mean your days of enjoying your fall gardening are over. If you plant now for the future and prepare for
the coming season, it's possible to enjoy a few last tasty morsels from your fall garden and ensure next spring's
landscape will be dazzling.
Here are a few fall gardening tips to ensure your fall harvest is as fresh and fabulous as
possible:
Plant fall garden vegetables for a bit of flavor
Add a few short-season vegetables to your
garden for fresh-from-the-field flavor this fall. Simply count the days from planting to the average first fall
frost to determine how many growing days are left in your area. Select fall garden vegetables that will mature and
can be harvested in that time. Leaf lettuce, spinach, mustard greens, radishes and carrots grow quickly, tolerate
cool weather and are great additions to your fall cuisine.
Get these fall vegetables off to a good start with a side dressing of low nitrogen fertilizer like Milorganite.
Incorporate it into the soil prior to planting or sprinkle a narrow band along the row of plants. "This organic
nitrogen will provide needed nutrients without damaging the tender seedlings. It is safe to use on all your edible
and ornamental plants," says  Melinda
Myers, nationally known horticulturist and author.
Your tender vegetables need frost protection so cover them up...
Protect tender vegetables
like tomatoes and peppers from the first few fall frosts. Floating row covers, cloches and cold frames can protect
tender plants from frost. Or harvest green tomatoes before the killing frost and finish ripening them indoors.
Spread them out on heavy paper or wrap them in newspaper so the tomatoes don't touch and store them in a 65-degree
location. They will ripen over the next few weeks. Speed up the process by moving a few tomatoes to a bright, warm
location a few days before they are needed. And don't leave green tomatoes behind. They taste great fried or made
into relish and other tasty treats.
Plant yourself some spring color
A fall planting of daffodils, grape hyacinths and other long-lived bulbs can provide many springs of beauty.
Prepare the soil and add a low nitrogen slow release fertilizer like Milorganite to the soil. "This organic source
of nitrogen releases needed nutrients including phosphorous and potassium from the soil without promoting unwanted
fall growth," according to Myers.
Give your trees a boost with tree nutrition
Don't forget about your
tree nutrition this fall. As the temperatures cool, and even after trees lose their leaves, tree roots are in their
most active growth period. Fertilize trees in need of a nutrient boost about one month after the first killing
frost but before the soil freezes. Use Milorganite to encourage balanced growth without the risk of damaging the
roots. The organic source of nitrogen is slow release and stays in the soil. The non-staining iron is available to
plants no matter the pH. So, you can give stressed trees nutrition without encouraging excess growth or incurring
root damage.
Fall fertilization for your winter lawn preparation
Help your lawn recover from the heat and
drought of summer and prepare it for winter with fall fertilization. University research has shown that fall
fertilization is the most beneficial practice for home lawns. Less disease problems and slower weed growth mean
your lawns -- not the pests -- benefit from the nutrients. Fall fertilization also helps lawns recover from the
stresses of summer because it encourages deep roots and denser growth that can better compete with weeds, and
tolerate disease and insects.
"Northern gardeners can follow the holiday schedule and fertilize Labor Day and Halloween. Southern gardeners
should make their last fall fertilization at least 30 days before the lawn goes dormant or the average first
killing frost to avoid winter kill," recommends Myers. Use a low nitrogen slow release fertilizer, for best
results.
Give winter plant protection to tender species
A good, long drink and a little winter plant
protection goes a long way to help struggling and less hardy plants through the winter ahead. A blanket of
evergreen boughs, straw or marsh hay applied after the ground freezes will prevent frost heaving and early
sprouting, and increase the chance of winter survival for bulbs and perennials.
Wind breaks and mulch can reduce winter drying and death of broadleaf and other evergreens. Water these and
other plantings thoroughly before the ground freezes to increase overwintering success.
Add a layer of wood chip mulch on the soil surrounding trees and shrubs to moderate soil temperatures, conserve
moisture and reduce weed competition. Keep mulch off tree trunks and shrub stems. Now, enjoy your fall gardening
and look forward to those tasty fall garden vegetables!
Courtesy of ARAcontent
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Gardening Tips Here
Fall Gardening - Fall Garden Tips - Fall Garden Vegetables - Fall
Tree Nutrition - Fall Fertilization - Fall Plant Frost Protection - Fall Garden Care
How To Make The Most Of Your Fall
Gardening Harvest
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