Master gardener John Hethrington works year-round on his 20 different gardens. His advice for all gardeners is this: there's always work to be done.
Perennial plants mean perennial garden chores, but it's all so relaxing, right? Here's what former master gardener and Meaford resident John Hethrington recommends you chop, divide and stop to smell in the month of September:
Trim back perennials like daylilies and iris.
My mother always cut the iris fans up one side and down the other into a perfect V. But she was a picky gardener.
Divide them as needed. Make sure it’s a cool, cloudy day to divide and replant, or to pot up plants for your neighbours, or for fall plant sales or exchanges.
Fall is the ideal time to divide and plant iris, daylilies, peonies and many other perennials. Share extra plants with neighbours.
To see my YouTube video on dividing and potting up plants click here, but don’t laugh at the old man grunting and groaning, as he divides up his perennials.
Buy and plant spring-flowering bulbs. Your efforts will be handsomely rewarded next spring.
Check out the website www.flowerbulbsrus.com for good deals.
Dig the hole a little deeper than the specified depth and add some water to the bottom of the hole, then some soil, then a little bonemeal fertilizer or special bulb food. Water well after planting to start root growth
Take a critical look at your garden. Then fill in any gaps that may have developed with new perennials, shrubs and/or evergreens. They will get a huge head start over plants planted next spring.
Bring in house plants when the evenings start to cool down. First, give them a thorough spray with insecticidal soap so that there are no unwanted hitchhikers coming into your home.
With cool nights and hoped-for fall rains, it’s the ideal time for lawn repair. Dig out weeds, add clean, weed-free topsoil and re-seed. Keep the planted area moist.
Fertilize lawns with root-building “fall fertilizer” with a low first number (nitrogen) and high second and third numbers (phosphorus and potash).
Don’t use the lawn fertilizer you have left over from the spring, probably with a high first number (nitrogen). Save it for early next spring.
Even with the rain we have had this summer, deep down it is probably still dry.
Dig a little test hole, say 14”-16” deep. Check the moisture levels at that depth. If the bottom of the hole is dry, water your gardens weekly and deeply until frost.
Buy a soaker end and put it on the end of your hose. Then put it in the middle of your relatively flat garden beds and let the water seep slowly in.
Look for the annual Grey County Master Gardener’s fall plant sale, for a wide variety of top-flight perennials, Saturday Sept. 14 from 9 a.m. until noon. Again this year, it’s in Meaford, at the Rotary Pavilion at the Harbour.
Choose from unique perennials and lots of native and pollinator plants at reasonable prices.
