FAll Clean Up= whistle while you work

[The MidgeT]

You and your fall garden benefit when you give your plants the same TLC in fall as you do in spring and summer. Wildlife will find food and shelter, weeds will be easier to control, and plant diseases as well as pests will no longer drive you crazy. Follow OG's guide to the tasks and tools to help you through the season's finale-and you can thank us come spring.

Home gardeners should first identify their pests and then act to reduce the potential for exacerbating these problems through overwintering, says Tom Green, Ph.D., president of the IPM Institute of North America (www.ipminstitute.org ). Here are

Dr. Green's tips for your fall garden:

* Remove all rotten fruit from the ground around trees-infestations last through winter.

* Mulch to maintain soil quality, using weeds (but not those with seeds), cocoa hulls, grass clippings, leaves, and straw.

* Plant cover crops after harvest to correct soil compaction.

* Confuse pathogens by mapping out a garden plan for crop rotation.

* Protect perennials from frost heaving by mulching after the ground freezes.

* Protect ornamentals such as azaleas and berry bushes from bud-eating deer with deer netting.

OG CHECKLIST

Clean out old annuals and weeds before seeds drop.

Cut back spent perennials that create hiding places for slugs, snails, and other pests. Prevent problem seeds from spreading.

Leave dried flowers, ornamental grasses, and seed heads that look good and provide food for birds.

Till the garden and plant a fall cover crop.

Build a simple compost bin for fall leaves. Add fresh leaves and grass cuttings to your compost and cover until spring.

Rake up and dispose of leaves around roses, apple trees, and plants susceptible to powdery mildew and other pests and diseases that overwinter on debris.

Remove diseased tomato, potato, and squash foliage to prevent disease. Do not toss these plants in the compost. Bag and discard.

Remove dead branches from roses and fruit trees (no pruning yet).

Mulch the garden with chopped-up leaves and grass clippings.

Plant spring bulbs.

Clean tool blades with vegetable oil and handles with sandpaper.

Kick back.

[Rexall]

You don't have the Land of Oz mixed up with the 7 dwarfs do you with the whistle while you work!

[The Midget]

Rexall wrote:

You don't have the Land of Oz mixed up with the 7 dwarfs do you with the whistle while you work!

NAW!!!!!!!! we all talk you know an we're all little people remember that what little folks do is whistle while we work ))))lol ! you known that help the mood a little better rex every one need a special tone to get motivated

[Rexall]

The Midget wrote:

<quoted text>NAW!!!!!!!! we all talk you know an we're all little people remember that what little folks do is whistle while we work ))))lol ! you known that help the mood a little better rex every one need a special tone to get motivated

I use to have a neighbor who wasn't in good health but she could still sit by her window. She would sit there and whistle the whole time I was riding my bike up and down the driveway. I couldn't get on the road much then so I guess we kept each other company. I still remember that to this day.

[The MidgeT]

Fall cleanup tips to ensure a spectacular spring
Fall cleanup tips to ensure a spectacular spring
Published on October 1, 20
There are lots of reasons to pay attention to the landscape before the full force of winter hits. First, the weather is cooler, making outdoor work more comfortable. The soil also is usually more evenly moist and easier to work than in spring. Here are some additional dos and don'ts to consider:
• Plant trees, shrubs and perennials, many of which will be marked down at the garden center. Do this before the ground freezes, a time that varies from mid- to late October in the upper Midwest to early December in the lower part of the region. Make sure to water these new plantings regularly before the lawn freezes.
| Cut back irises and daylilies to reduce the chance of insects and diseases in the soil.• Don't fertilize new plantings or other plants in the landscape. Fertilizing now will spur new growth, which won't have a chance to acclimate before winter arrives, making plants susceptible to damage. It's all right to add a dusting of compost in the gardens as you clean up the beds.
• Plant spring-blooming bulbs. Ideally, the bulbs should have four to six weeks in the ground to form a root mass before the ground freezes. Water after planting.

• Don't prune spring blooming shrubs, such as lilac (Syringa), forsythia (Forsythia) and big-leaf hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla). Pruning them now will remove next spring's flowers.
• Pull frost-damaged annuals from the garden and bring out the cool-season replacements, such as pansies (Viola x wittrockiana), snapdragons (Antirrhinum majus), nemesia (Nemesia), larkspur (Consolida ambigua) or ornamental cabbage and kale. Summer loving petunias (Petunia x hybrida) and mealycup sage (Salvia farinacea) are quite tolerant of cool weather and will carry their color into late fall
• Cut back frost-damaged perennials, such as hosta (Hosta), daylilies (Hemerocallis) and hardy hibiscus (Hibiscus moscheutos). Any perennial that gets unattractive when cold weather hits can be cut back. Cut back perennials as close to the ground as possible.
• Some perennials, such as coneflowers (Echinacea), sedums (Sedum) and Japanese anemone (Anemone x hybrida), keep on giving all winter with attractive seed heads, which also feed finches, juncos and other birds that stay in the area.
• Fertilize the lawn one last time in late October in the northern Midwest and November in the lower region. This late dose helps the lawn green up earlier and reduces the need to fertilize in spring.

• Send established trees, shrubs and perennials into winter with a good soaking of water, especially if there has been little or no rain.

• Remove plant debris from garden beds, especially where there were infestations of insects or diseases. The fallen leaves, stems or seed heads harbor these problems and allow them to return next year.

• Mulch leaves with the mower or rake them from the lawn. Leaves, especially the large ones like maples and sycamores, can smother and kill the grass, and invite insects and diseases.

[The MidgeT]

1.Clean all your garden tools thoroughly, and put them away for the winter.
2.Clean and grease riding mowers and weed eaters and remove any leftover fuel if they are to be stored in the cold.
Painting and Repair
The gardener may want to take a walk around her garden at study the decorative fixtures for anything crying out for repair. Winter can cause havoc on wooden structures as well as hardscapes.

1.Repaint wooden fences or arbors if they are beginning to show wear. Painting them before the winter add to their longevity.
2.Repair concrete now to avoid further damage. Outside stone work such as garden walls should also be scrutinized for problems.
Last Minute Work
Even when the gardener thinks all is clean and tidy, there is bound to be something she's missed. Don't overlook the porch, patio or terrace.

1.Bring in any empty clay pots or other containers that could be damaged by the constant freezing and thawing throughout the cold season.
2.Put the garden furniture in the shed and bring in the pillows and seat cushions to avoid rodents nesting in them.
3.Ensure the outside water taps are turned off and hoses drained.
4.Protect cold-frames with canvas.
5.Cover the barbecue.
6.If window boxes aren't fixed permanently in place, they should be treated like pots. Remove the soil and store them in shed.
7.If the gardener has a wood stove or fireplace in her home, ensure the logs are piled neatly for drying and easy accesses

[love life]

t/y

[Debe Cartwright]

I only wish I got to put my garden out this year. With sons that got married in June and August - I couldn't do the garden thing this year. So tools are just fine. lol

As for my lawnmower - it was just used again. lol

[pay those bills]

Please don't rack those leaves until we get a chance to see them, they are so pretty and everyone wants to rack kor blow while it's still warm out but they are so eyecatching. Especially Eastern Kentucky ***BEAutiful***

[Debe Cartwright]

pay those bills - I am not sure about KY leaves but here in MO - they become a huge fire hazard. And ours are all off the trees (pretty much) and dried out. The quicker they are gone, the less change a cigarette thrown into them will make them catch on fire.

"It only takes a spark, to get a fire going!"