I LOVE OCTOBER. This is when my ancient maples, oaks, and a 200-year-old beech tree (above) morph into giant fireballs of vermilion and gold. I’ll take photographs at mid-month, the height of our Northeastern “leaf-peeping” season. Meanwhile, the “To Do” list for October starts with falling leaves — and why it’s important to save them:
Outdoors …
Leaves & Compost. Rake leaves from grass to avoid soggy matting. Mature trees do not make light work, but think of the compost you can make with all this leafy nitrogen ready to decay. A simple out-of-sight leaf pile with a hollow in the center to catch rain will suffice, or you can place the leaves in wire-mesh bins.
To hasten decomposition, shred the leaves with a lawnmower. Or, do what I do, and shred them with a nifty, light-weight gadget called the “Flowtron Ultimate Leaf Shredder” (you can find a link to this machine on the right-hand column of this site).
I can assure you that leaf mold (decomposed leaves) is ambrosia for garden beds. It turned the horridly compacted soil in my Rose Garden — a former asphalt parking lot — into fertile, worm-filled, easy-to-dig loam.
Chrysanthemums and Asters. If you don’t already have these in your garden, by all means obtain and plant them now. They are the brightest and best of all flowering perennials for the autumn show. Cut back tops when flowering ceases.
Bulbs. Plant as many daffodil, tulip, hyacinth, grape-hyacinth (above) and crocus as you can. There’s no such thing as too many of these in spring. Not sure which varieties to order? I’ll bet this will help.
Heuchera (Coralbells). You might want to edge a whole bed by dividing several of your large established clumps. Proceed this way.
Hostas. Remove withered foliage. Wait until spring growth has started to divide and relocate plants.
Iris. Remove only the foliage which has yellowed. Green leaves are still providing nourishment to the rhizomes.
Peonies. Cut off foliage as it fades. Then dig in a trowelful of bonemeal around each plant.
Shrubs. You can buy these at steeply-discounted prices now. I can heartily recommend flowering quince ‘Cameo,’ pictured above, which starts the season with a big floral show, and ends it with a bounty of edible fruit.
Watering. Should there be little rainfall this month, which has not been the case here, soak your perennials finally and deeply about the third week. Plants which have suffered drought are prone to winterkill. Let yours go dormant in good condition.
Vegetable Garden. Remove and compost all finished plants. Store wooden trellising and wire tomato cages. If raised beds appear low on soil, heap them high with shredded leaves. By spring the leaves will have decayed sufficiently, which means you won’t have top off beds with purchased soil.
Brussels sprouts. Harvest the big green marbles from the bottom of stalks; let the smaller ones above mature. Don’t worry about frost — the sprouts are always sweeter after they have endured frigid weather.
I become sweeter when the weather turns cool, too.
Garlic. Plant the bulbs now. They need to start making roots before the ground freezes solidly. For details, see My Garlic Growing & Sowing Guide.
Potatoes. It’s harvest time! On a sunny day, dig up the tubers, brush off dirt, and lay them in the sun for a few hours to cure. Then arrange for dark, cool storage; 40-50 degrees is ideal. I store potatoes this way.
Salad Greens. If a killing frost is predicted, be prepared to cover plants with a frost blanket. Or, turn one of your raised beds into a hoop-house, as I plan to do, by inserting flexible PVC pipes into brackets attached to each side of the bed. Pin a frost blanket (available at garden centers) to the pipes, and you can enjoy fresh spinach and other greens well into November and possibly even December.
Indoors…
Set up a window garden! Outfit a window with glass shelves, and you can have all kinds of fun creating seasonal plant-pictures. The directions are here.
African violets. Place them in full sun as days grow shorter toward the end of the month. My easy, always-in-bloom program for these Saintpaulias.
Thanksgiving Cactus (Schlumbergera truncate – often misnamed the “Christmas Cactus”). For best flowering, set the plant in a cold, dim place, and do not water it for the entire month. Bring to full sun on November 1. Tips for growing and displaying this Brazilian tourist.
Scented Geraniums (Pelargoniums). Root cuttings of your favorites now. They will make wonderful Christmas and birthday presents for your plant-minded friends.
Wax begonias. Place these in your light or sunny windows for steady, unfailing bloom.
Paperwhite Narcissus. For Thanksgiving bloom, pot bulbs now. Autumn plantings take about 10 weeks to flower. I grow these tender bulbs in water and gin. Yes, gin.
Dutch Hyacinths. Early this month, set the bulbs in little vases, or “hyacinth jars.” Then place the vases in a dark, cold (but not freezing) place for 12 weeks of rooting. (French-Roman varieties require only 5-6 weeks in cool darkness.) More details in my handy hyacinth-forcing guide.
Daffodils, Tulips. Pot these in soil, and permit 10-12 weeks of cold, dark storage before bringing to warmth and light. My easy tulip-forcing tutorial.
Freesia. Plant the corms this month, and by February, your house will be filled with THE most delicious fragrance in the world. The plant is really easy to grow, for it does not require a cold, dark chilling period. My freesia-forcing guide.
Pachysandra. Pull up some rooted sections or take cuttings from outdoor groundcover areas. Insert stems in a floral “pin cushion” set in a shallow bowl. Plants will grow; cuttings will root. Pachysandra makes a pretty picture for a windowsill, especially when placed between matching bowls of paperwhite narcissus.
Poinsettia. To achieve Christmas bloom, provide these short-day plants with at least twelve hours of definite darkness for seventy days. A light-proof closet from 7 P.M. to 7 A.M. will do the trick. More details here.
What’s happening in your garden this month? Are your deciduous trees dropping their leaves yet?
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I really need to follow this month’s chores to a T!!!
Been really busy lately, so I haven’t given my garden proper acknowledgement – but this fall I promise not to falter! Primarily, collecting leaves and dumping them into a compost bin! [something entirely new for me this year]…
Sad thing is my neighbor across the street has been diligently running his lawn mower over his grass and leaf-blowing the leaves… EVERY DAY. So wasteful.
[I'm waiting for next weekend... I can still see my grass. Har har har!]
I’d collect his lawn refuse if only he didn’t fertilize w/ garbage and used round-up on the “weeds” aka clover and dandelions. /sigh
I am envious of your potato harvest – they look great! I’d never think to let them cure in the sun like that. Brilliant! ♥
My neighbor’s red maple leaves have developed big black spots over the last 2 years. He said he looked it up and it is one of the mildew diseases. I try to rake these up and send them out w/ neighborhood yard waste collection but eventually they get all mixed up w/ my own silver maples. Some invariably make it into my compost pile. What is your opinion? Keep them out or just throw them in?
Also, re: finished compost. Do I remember you saying not to dig this in to the beds yet? Should I just lay it on top of the beds (I want to clear the bin to make room for leaves).
A chore I’ve added that I found works nicely for the urban/suburban garden, is collecting a big bag of my favorite ,un-diseased maple leaves and keeping them in the garage. I use these throughout winter so I can cover up kitchen scraps I throw on the pile, and find they come in handy the following summer too. Using them indoors in a rubbermaid container I can keep scraps without an expensive carbon-filtered counter device with no odors. That reduces the need to trek out to the compost bin very often if the snow gets high which makes me more apt to keep up w/ composting in Winter.
Gonna try the maple leaves in the counter compost pot. And compost leaves like crazy. I love fall!
Donna B. – You are right — no “faltering in fall!”
badgergardener – You can dig the compost into your beds, or just leave it on top. I’m a no-dig kind of gardener.
In regards to Rhytisma acerinum, or “Black Tar Spot” on maple leaves, reports I’ve read say to shred and compost the leaves. Apparently shredding alone reduces many of the disease-spores. The disease is not harmful to other plants — only maples. And the maples have learned to deal with it.
Like you, I once filled several garbage bags with shredded leaves, and kept them in my garage over winter. Kept moist and sprinkled lightly with cottonseed meal (for nitrogen) the leaves quickly turned into leaf mold. Enjoyed the gorgeous, “forest-y” scent each time I opened a bag in winter!
Anne B – I love fall, too. And kudos to you for composting.
Thank you, thank you, thank you…exactly what I needed to hear.
I apologize for the bombardment of questions. We’ve had such perfect Fall weather, an early peak here in SE WI, so I have been in the garden often and you are such a great source of info that works.
In working with my compost pile I found tree roots have worked their way into the pile from underneath. Originally I put some landscape fabric under the bin, but it must have broken down over the yrs. Do you think the newspaper mulching trick you use would work under the new pile to keep those roots out? Do I need to use, ugh, landscape plastic ? I’m glad the maples got a healthy dose of compost, but those nutrients are for my veggies and flowers.
Thanks for your answers above. Will definitely shred the leaves first and add them to the compost.
Hi badger – It’s always best to locate a composting bin directly on soil. However, I understand the issue you have with tree roots entering the bin in search of food and water. Newspapers and landscaping fabric will not form an adequate barrier against foraging roots.
A better plan — if you can possibly manage it — is to place pavers or a stone or concrete slab beneath the bin. Before setting up the bin, place twigs on the slab. The twigs will help with drainage. Also, pour some garden dirt on the slab. The dirt will encourage microorganisms to enter the bin.
Let me know what you decide.
Hi Kevin!
I love your website. I live out in the inland Pacific Northwest. My tomatos are finally starting to turn red, but many are still green and I’m sure we’ll get frost soon. Your tip on ripening tomatos will totally save my crop. And, you inspired me to wash my windows! I love Fall cleaning. Harvest turnovers are on the menu soon too. Thanks for all you do!
Hi Kevin,
As the weather takes a turn, I suddenly realize how much I have to do (including trying to live-trap something that has decided to get cozy in our attic crawl space, raccoon or possum the likely culprit). So we shall see if I get to revamping the compost pile. I should be able to get some discarded concrete slabs from a neighbor who does some concrete work on the side, so I’ll definitely have a plan to tackle it next year.
First frost is expected for WI overnight too. I still have my cherry tomatoes going, extra blanket layers added. They only need a few more days for a good-sized batch of slow-roasted beauts and I am determined.
Regarding invasive tree roots in the base of the compost pile…
I store finished, stable compost in large plastic garbage cans, waiting to be sifted and protected from rainfall which leaches away nourishment. The bottoms of these cans have a few 1/4″ holes drilled in them to allow excess moisture to drain away and to allow bugs to come and go. (Holes are also drilled around the sides of the can too, several inches apart, and the lid is an old storm window which does not fit tightly, allowing soil dwellers to come and go.)
I have found tree roots from spruces coming into my can of compost through these 1/4″ holes in the base, blossoming outward and nearly filling the can. It is annoying to find this when all I wanted was a quick shovelful of compost and roots prevent me from lifting it out. It is most often seen in very early spring, having taken the winter to infiltrate.
My regular compost piles, all 9 of them, are spaced around the property in twos or threes, making it convenient to dump organic matter no matter where I am laboring. I line the bases of each with many layers of newspaper to stave off root invasion, and it lasts a fairly long time. It is certainly enough protection until I turn and relocate that particular mass 3 feet to the left. I use rounds of chain link fencing for bins, or hardware cloth, or recycled black plastic bins – all are mobile, all at least 3x3x3 feet, and regularly relocated.
I teach composting classes and have met many interesting gardeners this way. It is loads of fun to chat about composting with like-minded individuals. Many others have problems with invasive tree roots, too. I don’t know of any cure-all for this dilemma except regular relocation of the tempting mass of nutritious compost.
Hi Kevin. Do you trim off the peony foliage while it’s still green (which mine is at the moment in the Pacific NorthWest)?
Thanks for another great article.
Beverly – Gardeners are the nicest people in the world. Thanks for the great composting tips!
Bryonna – I’ve just added “as it fades” to the peony foliage cutting-chore. The foliage on my peonies started to wane over a month ago. Cut yours as it begins to lose color.
looks like you have potatoe scab, here is a site that address’ that. http://www.ehow.com/how_4422949_fight-potato-scab.html when I was a kid my folks always soaked the cut up potato and allowed them to dry before planting. I want to say they used lye, maybe someone out there have some ideas, I know crop rotation is important, like 3 yrs, but who has that much room to do that. Also they are a niteshade plant and so is tomato and pepper, eggplant,there are others, so you can’t plant them in those spots either.