garden Borders and beyond
Autumnal colors beckon...
This has been a very dry beginning to October, with nary a drop of rain in September. What fell as precipitation did not even register on the rain gauge. This is all the more reason to make sure that you supply sufficient water to any newly planted trees, shrubs or perennials until the rains come. Do you have a tree or shrub that needs to be moved? Wait till the shrub or tree has dropped its leaves and gone into dormancy before you transplant.
As fall colors are starting to show in the trees and shrubs, it is time to think about planting bulbs for next season. Mid to late October is perfect for planting bulbs for spring/summer color, such as crocuses, snowdrops, daffodils, tulips, hyacinths or ornamental onions. Consider leaving seedheads of flowering perennials up for the birds and not cleaning up too much plant debris to help wildlife overwinter.
in the vegetable patch
Tidy up your vegetable beds.
This is the month to think about putting in your garlic bulbs, onion sets and planting fava beans to overwinter. All vegetation in the vegetable beds should be cleared to prevent the plant debris from harboring disease. A layer of mulch such as compost can protect the bare soil from the winter rains and from weeds taking hold. There is still time to sow a cover crop to improve the soil for next year’s crops. For those who are interested in gardening year round, this is the month to put up some protection from the rains and cold for your baby greens, such as a row cover or a cloche.
For a detailed planting calendar, please refer to
- Seattle Tilth's "The Maritime Northwest Garden Guide" book
- PDF from Oregon Tilth https://tilth.org/app/uploads/2015/02/OT_PHCalendar_Archive.pdf
- Oregon extension service https://extension.oregonstate.edu/gardening/techniques/monthly-garden-calendars
- Washington State University extension service https://extension.wsu.edu/snohomish/fall-and-winter-vegetable-gardens-for-western-washington