September marks the end of summer and the beginning of the autumnal equinox. While daytime temperatures are still hot, nighttime temperatures are starting to cool down. As the seasons change, it's time to devote more time to the garden to tackle end-of-summer maintenance and prepare for the cooler weather ahead. Pay attention to gaps in the bed where color is missing and think about how you can make the fall garden even more interesting next year. Therefore, you should maintain and enrich your ornamental garden in September! Check out our tips!
Some gardeners equate their late summer ornamental garden with a “dead zone” where hardly anything seems to bloom. But that doesn't have to be the case. A simple solution is to plant clusters of pansies throughout the bed for instant color. For a longer-term and more creative solution to the problem, think outside the box. In addition to the usual asters and chrysanthemums, there are many other plants that provide both color and interesting texture. About the shine factorin your late summer gardenTo increase, you can use some of the following plants:
- Anise-Hyssop (Agastache ssp.)
- Artemisia
- Schönheitsbeere (Callicarpa)
- Blue Hazel (Caryopteris)
- Boltonia
- Traubensilberkerze (Actaea racemosa)
- Coral bells (Heuchera)
- Culverwurzel (Veronicastrum virginicum)
- Dahlias
- Goldroot (Solidago)
- Kugel-Amaranth (Gomphrena)
- Ragwort (Eupatorium)
- Lamb ears (Stachys)
- Lantana
- Mexican bush sage (Salvia leucantha)
- Monkshood (Aconite)
- ornamental peppers
- Perennial sunflower (Helianthus)
- Pineapple sage
- Rosa Muhlygras (Muhlenbergia)
- Rote Spinnenlilie (Lycoris radiata)
- Russian sage (Perovskia)
- Nieswurz (Helenium)
- Fetthenne (Sedum)
- Toad lily (Tricyrtis hirta)
- Turtle head (chelone)
- zinnias
What tasks should you do in the fall garden?
- Continue watering shrubs, trees, and perennials that require regular moisture. If they go into the winter with dry roots, this can mean big problems for the trees in the spring. If there is not enough rain, you should plant the trees throughout the fallwater regularly, until the ground begins to freeze (usually late October or November). With little to no snow cover and little precipitation, you should water your trees 1-2 times per month until they leaf out in spring. Water early in the day when there is no snow or ice near your trees.
- Keep pulling weeds! Remove anything that looks diseased and DO NOT compost it. If you leave the seed heads standing, they can also sow themselves. If your garden has space, that's a big advantage. And if not, you should look for seedlings next spring. Replant them in other areas or pot them up for dividing.
- Remove foliage from plants affected by powdery mildew. This mildew often appears later in the growing season. Many fungal diseases can overwinter in plant debris and cause infections the following year if growing conditions favor the disease. Powdery mildew, for example, often occurs when conditions are cool and humid.
- Leave healthy foliage to protect the crowns of some plants from low temperatures. The energy from the healthy foliage remains in the plant and nourishes the roots. Which types of perennials should retain their foliage? Fern fronds should not be removed as they protect the crown. The evergreen foliage of the hellebore must not be removed. Perennials with basal crowns (a rosette of leaves connecting the stem to the roots) often die back to the crown. When a perennial grows new basal leaves at the crown, cut off the spent stems, but do not disturb the new leaves at the base. Examples of such perennials include Coralbells (Heuchera sanguinea), Siberian Günsel (Brunnera macrophylla), Salvia x sylvestris, Lungwort (Pulmonaria), Black-eyed Susanna (Rudbeckia), Purple Coneflower (Echinacea), Clovewort (Lychnis coronaria) and Wild Indigo (Baptisia ).
- CutGrasses and sedges return in early spring rather than fall to protect the crown in winter and create habitat for insects, birds and small mammals. The beautiful colors and structures of grasses and sedges make the landscape interesting even in winter.
- Remove annuals that are wilted, diseased, or that you know will become “slimy” with the first frost. Impatiens are a good example of annual plants that turn black with the first frost.
- Rejuvenate your planters by supplementing your healthiest summer annuals with fall flowers.
- Bring houseplants indoors before nighttime temperatures drop. Inspect the plants carefully for pests such as scale insects, whiteflies, mealy bugs, spider mites or fungus gnats. Wipe down the vessels and coasters, including the bottoms, to remove cobwebs, dirt, and debris. Pay particular attention to the undersides of the leaves, where pests most often reside.
Division and planting of perennials and bulb flowers
September is an excellent timeDivide perennials. Most recommendations specify 4-6 weeks before the first frost for plants to take root. More tender plants require a longer adaptation period. Although many perennials can be divided in either spring or fall, a general guideline is that spring-blooming perennials should be divided in fall and summer to fall-blooming perennials should be divided in spring.
Fall is also a good time to plant perennials, which you can find on sale at the end of the season. However, keep in mind the first frost date and 6 week guideline as described above. You can also plant bulbous flowers in September to add spring color to your ornamental garden!
