Keep them Growing
As garden herbs start to bolter, cut them back to keep the plant producing new foliage rather than going to seed. For tomato or pepper plants that have stopped producing due to the heat, just remove any dead leaves, keep them watered, and they should start to bear fruit again when cooler fall weather arrives.

Clean it up
Remove any dead or spent plants from the garden, and if they are not diseased, add them to your compost pile. Pull any weeds that may have started to take hold.

Amend the Soil
Add compost to garden beds and till into the soil. This will help replace nutrients taken up by the previous planting.

Draw a Plan
You don’t need a degree in art or an expensive software program to draw a rough sketch of your landscape and garden plan. If you have the original survey from when you bought your house, make a copy of it and use that as a starting point. If not, just make a rough sketch of the footprint of your home. Draw in existing landscape features, and planned garden areas. Indicate which way is north and make note of any shady or poorly drained areas.

Add Fall Color
Look at your landscape as a whole and determine what native or locally adapted fall flowers are best suited to the different areas of your yard based on their color, size, water requirements, and the amount of sun needed. By planting now, they will be well established and ready to flower come fall.

Grow What You Like
Make a list of the fall vegetables for your area that your family likes and rank them from most to least liked.

Some Cool Weather Favorites are: Arugula, Beets, Bok Choi, Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, Carrots, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Collards, Cress, Endive, Garlic, Kale, Leeks, Mustard Greens, Onions, Peas, Radishes, Spinach, and Turnips.

Plan to plant what you like. If no one in your family likes beets or brussels sprouts, for example, then plan on planting more of what is most liked.

Crop Rotation
Be sure to check out our Crop Rotation in the Home Garden Guide for tips on which vegetables you should and shouldn’t plant in the same spot right after each other.

Can, Store, or Eat
Decide what the intended use for each vegetable and herb will be. Do you plan on canning enough to last through the winter? Will you be freezing or dehydrating, or will you just eat and enjoy what you harvest this fall. Different varieties of many vegetables are better suited to a specific purpose such as canning. Do your research.

Add New Beds
Now that you know what you will be planting and what your harvest will be used for, you can determine how much of each variety you should plant. Look at your existing bed space and any areas of your yard that you may want to convert to garden beds. For new beds, avoid low-lying, poorly drained areas. Clear the ground, till and amend the soil now.

Order Seeds Now
Now that you’ve determined which vegetables, what varieties, and how many of each you will be planting this fall, order your seeds now. This will ensure that you get exactly what you want and have them ready to plant when the time arrives. Be sure to check out our comprehensive Seed Source Guide for an alphabetical listing of many sources of Seeds, Transplants, and Bulbs for Vegetables, Herbs, Flowers, Grains, Grasses, Ground Covers, Vines, Fruits, Sprouting, Trees, Wildflowers, and much more.

Don’t Lose Track of Today
Remember to enjoy each day on its own merit. It’s easy to get worn down by the heat, the weeding, and the canning. But don’t let the anticipation of your fall garden, and the promise of cooler temperatures yet to come, distract you from today. Remember, “To everything there is a season.”

The post It's Time To Plan your Fall Garden first appeared on The How Do Gardener.

According to a North Carolina State University study, a proper layer of mulch will result in a 10 to 25 percent decrease in soil moisture loss due to evaporation, help keep the soil aerated by reducing soil compaction from rain hitting directly on the soil, and reduce water runoff and soil erosion. The insulating qualities of mulch help keep the soil at a more uniform temperature by keeping it warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer.

Types of Mulch
Mulch falls into one of two main categories, organic mulch and inorganic mulch. Organic mulch would be material such as pine straw, bark nuggets, wood chips, compost, grass clippings, or even layers of newspaper. Organic mulch will usually decompose over time and will need to be replenished regularly. Examples of inorganic mulch are gravel, rocks, pebbles, recycled glass, recycled tire mulch, and landscape fabric. This type of mulch typically does not decompose over time so need only be placed once.

How Much
Mulch should be applied to a depth of about 2 to 4” and extend out to cover as much of the root zone as possible. For trees, mulch at least 3 to 6’ out from the tree. Be sure to pull mulch back 1 to 2” from the base of plants and trees to prevent rot.

Mulch Use Calculator
Check out The How Do Gardener Mulch Use Calculator to calculate how much mulch you will need to cover an area based on its length, width, and the depth of mulch desired.

Use a Border
Rather than just having a mulched bed go right up against your lawn, use a border of stones, metal or plastic edging material. This will make for a distinct outline for your mulched area, keep weeds and grass from growing into your beds, and make trimming the grass along the bed edges much easier.

Free Mulch?
Well, mulching sounds like a good idea, but what about this whole “free mulch” thing? Did you ever wonder what happens to the tree limbs and branches that the power company trims back from power lines, or the empty glass bottles that are picked up from all of those recycling bins you see curbside on garbage day? Here in Austin, and in many cities across the country, they are processed into various forms of mulch and made available to the public for little or no cost, usually at the city dump or recycling center.

Tree waste is shredded into traditional wood mulch, and the collected glass waste is crushed into small pieces and tumbled with course sand until the edges are smooth and there are no more sharp points. Some facilities sort the glass by color, and others mix glass of all colors together to produce an attractive multi-colored glass mulch.

Here in Austin, you can get as much wood mulch as you can load into your vehicle for no charge. If you load glass mulch yourself, it is also free, or for $9.67 you can have a worker in a Bobcat load a ton of glass mulch in one quick dump. Not a bad deal, a ton of mulch for the same price as a few bags of mulch purchased from the store.

Get Creative
Try putting different types of mulch in different beds and pathways in your landscape to add interest. Glass mulch makes an interesting and attractive addition to your home landscape, but its unique properties afford an opportunity to get creative. Try replacing that narrow strip of grass between the street and the sidewalk with glass mulch. I decided to form up my own custom concrete stepping stones, in sizes ranging from 1’ by 1’, to 1’ by 2’, and embed a layer of glass mulch into the top of the wet concrete to provide a one of a kind look for a pathway.

Summary
Mulch can be applied any time of the year. It can consist of a wide variety of materials with many different textures, colors, and looks. Other than a little elbow grease, it can often be applied for little or no cost. Check with your local municipal waste management facility or recycling center for free mulch in your area. Mulch is a great way to spruce up your landscape and protect your plants. Choose mulch with the look and the price that suits your needs and put some down this season. You’ll be pleased with the way your landscape looks and the way your plants and trees thrive.

The post Maybe There's No Free Lunch, But There Is Free Mulch first appeared on The How Do Gardener.

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Front-entry makeovers that are both eye-catching and functional are one of the hottest trends in landscape design these days.

“Decades ago, neighbors would often retire to their front porches in the evening and gather together for conversation with neighbors up and down the street,” says Lonnie Sekeres, designer at Villa Landscapes in Oakdale, Minn. “That practice is returning as families spend more time entertaining at home and getting to know their neighbors. A creatively designed front entryway can help facilitate that.”

It doesn’t have to be extravagant either. “Doing something as nominal as adding a paver walkway and freestanding wall – along with a new take on plants to accent certain areas – can do a lot to freshen up your curb appeal on a modest budget,” says Sekeres.

New Concept, Old Look
Many homeowners face the challenge of updating a home that looks a bit stuck in the past, but a front entry facelift can be an easy solution. Villa Landscapes transformed a rambler’s small and mundane concrete-slab front stoop into a sweeping paver patio and pergola-covered entryway defined by Versa-Lok retaining walls and columns. The stunning result changed the entire look of the home.

“The original house had a 4-foot-wide step to access the front door,” explains Sekeres. “The owner wanted to provide more useable space for traffic flow through the front door while creating a sense of an old-fashioned front porch. In addition, he wanted to use materials that would complement the existing home and also be low-maintenance.”

Versa-Lok retaining walls in a charcoal-blend color were used for seat-height freestanding walls and columns to create the new porch space. Paving stones in a matching color were used for the patio and walkway surface. The formerly boring square front stoop was transformed into an attractive rounded step that protrudes from the patio, flanked by two columns and faced with a veneer made from slicing off the back of a retaining wall block. The curved lines of the step are repeated in the walkway and in a round raised-bed garden.

The pergola extends from the front of the house, supported by white pillars mounted inside freestanding columns.

“What began as a cold and somewhat clumsy entrance to the house is now a bright and inviting gathering place that adds a contemporary look to what could have been a dated home,” Sekeres concludes.

Front-Yard Entertaining
Sekeres gave a another family’s home a facelift with a handsome hardscaped front-entry courtyard graced with fresh plantings. A plain concrete sidewalk was replaced with matching pavers to create a fresh look for the home with a new, more neighborly entertaining space.

“The entry had overgrown plants in some areas, bare spots in others. While it’s a beautiful house, it had lost its curb appeal and was in dire need of attention,” explains Sekeres. “Besides sprucing up the look of their home, the clients also wanted to have a spot out front to sit and chat with the neighbors as they passed by.”

The solution was a raised patio that extends from the existing front step to the middle of the yard. The patio is buttressed on the outer sides by freestanding Versa-Lok retaining walls accented at two corners with stylish matching columns.

The patio and sidewalk are paved with Willow Creek paving stones in a cobblestone pattern and color scheme that complements the walls and the home’s existing brick exterior. A variety of new plantings around the wall and patio soften the hardscaping.

“We come out here in the evening and it’s not 10 minutes before someone sees us and stops over,” one of the homeowners beamed. “We just love it.”

For more information on how you can give your home a front-entry makeover, contact Versa-Lok Retaining Wall Systems at (800) 770-4525, or visit www.versa-lok.com.

The post Retaining Walls and Pavers Add Curb Appeal to your Front Entry first appeared on The How Do Gardener.

But when winter actually gets here, what can you do to keep your landscaping healthy and attractive when the wind is howling, the ground is frozen, and snow and ice blanket your lawn and garden?

While natural snowfall or windblown snow seldom harm plants, Jamie Hancock with the Kansas State Research and Extension service notes that damage can occur when snow is dumped on plants by snow plows or shovels as walks and pathways are cleared. Cleared snow is generally heavier because it’s compacted, and that can mean damage to small branches and plants.

Another tip from the experts is to clear sidewalks with a deicing product that is friendly to your plants, such as one of the newer deicing products that contain magnesium chloride. A naturally occurring mineral, magnesium chloride melts ice in temperatures as low as minus 15 degrees Fahrenheit, and remains effective longer than many other ice melters, so it can keep walks safe even in extreme circumstances.

According to Jerry Poe, an expert in magnesium chloride and other salts, magnesium chloride is a superior ice melter and provides additional benefits to plants. Poe is director of research and development for North American Salt Company, which offers a pure magnesium chloride ice melter, Safe Step Extreme 8300. It is available at most hardware stores.

“Magnesium is a necessary nutrient, and magnesium chloride is used in agriculture – for example, in wheat farming – to provide necessary levels for complete plant nutrition,” Poe says. “So using magnesium chloride deicers to clear your walks in winter protects your plants and helps to fertilize them year round.”

And because magnesium chloride’s low melting temperature helps minimize the number of freeze/thaw cycles, it is friendly to concrete – a great feature if your landscaping includes decorative walkways or pavers. “Freeze/thaw cycles are the cause of concrete damage,” Poe says. “When ice melts, the resulting liquid works its way into cracks in the concrete. When the liquid refreezes, it expands and causes further cracking or spalling.”

To further reduce the possibility of damage, Poe recommends removing the slush and brine that results from using an ice melt product before it has a chance to refreeze.

One final thought for those days when snow blankets your landscaping: Snow can be your friend. Snow on the ground helps protect roots by insulating them from extreme cold, according to the University of Vermont Extension service. And it’s a self-regulating source of water; plants need water in the winter, and snow on the ground automatically provides moisture when there’s a thaw, even if temperatures get barely above freezing.

So, for the homeowner, the bottom line is this: Don’t throw heavy snow on delicate plants, and when you buy an ice melter, choose a product with magnesium chloride that can keep your walks clear while protecting your plants and landscaping.

The post How to Protect your Landscaping During the Snow Season first appeared on The How Do Gardener.

In the south, cooler temperatures make this a great time of year for gardening and outdoor entertaining. For northerners, winter brings snow sports and indoor activities. Regardless of your region, you can decorate for the approaching holidays by bringing the beauty of the outdoors in. Use natural elements from the yard and garden to create a festive decor to not only recycle nature’s bounty, but also perk up your home for winter entertaining.

Outside
In the north, annuals and perennials are done for the year. But, there are still plenty of other ways to add color and interest to an outdoor space. After removing all the remains of the summer flowers, take a long look at the remaining landscape and add focal points.

Is the front door the main area of interest? Feature a lovely evergreen with a light dusting of snow. Solar landscaping lights in containers work great next to the front door with a spot light angled to accent that beautiful tree. Want the apartment balcony to express a festive spirit? Set the mood and accent the desired focal points by incorporating other creative lighting. Try a string of festive lights across the balcony and evergreens in decorative pots.

Live evergreens of every size and shape are abundantly available in most areas at this time of year. You  can easily plant them in yards in warmer regions, or pop them into a container to be placed on the front steps or along the walkway to welcome guests.

Many types of these evergreens are available in most home improvement stores nationwide. Add your own lights for a personal touch. Create your own topiary form by using chicken wire to structure a simple cone shape. Then, simply tuck in some moss or a few branches of greenery. Ask for some discarded branches that have been trimmed from Christmas trees at the local nursery or tree farm. Place your topiary in a large pot and wrap with twinkle lights to welcome guests to the front door. Come spring, transplant these trees in the yard with Miracle-Gro Garden Soil.

Inside
Invite guests with fragrances of the season with well-placed potpourri or bits of cut evergreens. Pair the freshly cut boughs of evergreen with holly to accentuate the celebratory atmosphere of the season. Wire them together to make a garland with florist wire or tape. Then, place on the mantle, hang over the banister or use as a centerpiece for a table. Incorporate fruit such as apples, oranges, lemons, limes or pomegranates into garlands or floral arrangements for a fresh, fruity twist.

Use elements from nature that are unexpected for a splash of creativity. Dried flowers can simply be tucked into the boughs of a Christmas tree for an extra pop of festivity. Nuts are for more than just snacking; add them to the decorating mix for a surprise. Drill holes through acorns, walnuts or pecans and string them into a woodsy garland. Do not forget to use potted plants for decorating as well. Small live herbs trimmed in topiary forms can easily add a festive feel and fragrance to your home. Potted plants also make great hostess gifts and provide a beautiful bloom all year long.

This holiday season, do not leave the beauty of the garden outside. Welcome guests indoors with bits of the outdoors as fabulous decor.

The post Garden Accents for the Holidays first appeared on The How Do Gardener.

Here are 10- to 15-minute garden and lawn drills to keep your focus on the game and yard work on the sideline this fall:

September
* Lawns can get damaged when kids and pets play on grass that is still wilting from summer heat and drought. Spruce up your lawn by reseeding with a quality grass seed and lawn food specifically designed to help seed germinate, like Scotts Starter Fertilizer. Fall is the best time for grass. Keep the seed and young grass watered and hold off on any weed control until the new grass has been mowed four times.

* Feed the grass. The difference between “so-so” grass and truly beautiful grass, both now and next spring, is two fall feedings. Feeding in early September helps your lawn begin rebuilding grass roots that were damaged during the hot, dry summer. Feed again in late October to prepare for winter, using Scotts Winter Guard once new seed is established.

* Create patches of color in your landscape by filling pots with fall flora. Replace tired-looking summer plants with mums, asters, pansies and flowering cabbage. Look for special displays at local garden centers and add Miracle-Gro potting soil to your containers for big, beautiful blooms.

* Clean up the garden. Perennials may now be past their prime and the summertime vegetable garden may be looking a bit sparse. If so, cut them back. This will help keep bugs and disease away. Use what you cut to start a compost pile.

October
* Prevent tree leaves from smothering grass. Contrary to popular belief, fallen tree leaves will not insulate the lawn during winter. In fact, they can block vital sunlight and cause turf to thin. So, drop the rake and mulch leaves to dime-sized pieces with a lawn mower. Leave clippings on the lawn to allow leaves to recycle back into the soil, providing food for earthworms and soil microbes.

* Plant spring-blooming bulbs now for bursts of color later. Visit a local garden center for a great selection of daffodil, crocus, hyacinth, tulip and other spring-flowering bulbs. Plant in masses or tuck patches into other beds for a surprise of spring color. Feed with Miracle-Gro Organic Choice Bone Meal for strong root development.

* Due to cooler temperatures, fall is a great time to plant a tree or shrub. Soils stay warm late into the fall which allows for good root development and less transplant shock. Roots will also have an easier time starting new growth again in early spring, and plants are often on sale in autumn. Be sure to use Miracle-Gro Quick Start Transplant Starting Solution to help prevent transplant shock and provide essential nutrients.

November
Mow at a “summer height” of 2 to 3 inches until your grass stops growing – into early winter. Do not lower your height for the final cut.

* Clean up tools for a fresh start next spring. They have served you well all season, but now it is time to put them away. To prevent rusting, give tools a good cleaning before hanging up, and then spray a light coating of common household oil. When finished mowing for the year, perform any mower maintenance before storage for winter. Sharpen mower blades, change the spark plug, and be sure to drain the gas or run the engine dry of fuel.

With these quick drills in the rotation, the garden and lawn will stay in tip-top shape leaving plenty of time to catch games. They also will look great for any impromptu tailgate parties. These simple tasks will make life easier next spring and give the garden and lawn a head start.

The post Have More Time for Football: 15-minute Garden and Lawn Drills first appeared on The How Do Gardener.