October 20, 2004

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The planting season for most trees, shrubs and perennials is winding
down. To allow enough time for root establishment finish planting
projects by the end of the month. The season for planting spring
flowering bulbs, however is just starting. By mid-October the soil is
usually cool enough to plant bulbs. Warm soil signals the bulb to start
growing foliage. At this time of the year they need only to put out
some
root growth. All the spring flowering bulbs need a cold period of many
weeks in order to flower.

Daffodils, hyacinths, tulips, and crocus bulbs can all be planted from
now until the ground freezes. But the bulbs can dry out if planting is
delayed too long. And if the bulbs are stored in plastic bags they are
prone to decay. Make sure the bags are well ventilated until planting
day.

Unlike the hardy spring flowering bulbs, most of the summer blooming
bulbs are tender. Begonias, cannas, dahlias and elephant ears can not
survive our cold winter in the ground. They can be treated as annuals
and discarded after frost or dug up and stored indoors for the winter.
These bulbs and tubers can be carefully lifted from their pots or the
ground after the first frost. Trim away the dead foliage and let them
dry for two weeks. Inspect the dried bulbs for insect damage or
disease,
discarding the damaged ones. Store the healthy ones in dry peat moss at
a temperature of around 45 degrees F.

Peonies can be planted in October, it is considered the best time. They
can be planted from dormant tuberous roots or from divisions of
existing
plants. The caution is to plant them shallow. The “eyes” should be two
inches deep under the soil. Planting too deep results in failure to
bloom.

Lawn care this month includes seeding bare spots, lime application and
weed control. Although the annual weeds will die out after hard frosts,
some of the perennial weeds are still growing. Dandelions thrive in
cool
weather and October is a good time to control them.

There is still time to plant quick germinating grass seed like
perennial
rye. You want it to come up quickly before you have to start raking the
falling leaves. As long as the soil temperature is around 60 degrees
most grass seed will germinate.

October is a great month for spreading lime on the lawn and in garden
beds. Lime works its way slowly into the soil over a period of months.
An application of lime now will start to become available sometime next
spring. The freeze and thaw cycle of the soil in our typical winter
helps to work the lime down where it needs to be.

It is always best to have the soil tested for pH before applying lime.
Some garden centers will perform a pH test on a soil sample for free.
Be
sure to provide at least a pint of soil taken from random spots in the
lawn or garden area. The sample should be free of rocks and roots. Take
the sample from a depth of 4-6 inches down. An overly dry or wet sample
will not give accurate results.

Lime is applied at a rate of 40 lbs. per 1000 square feet or in other
words a ton to the acre. At this rate the pH can be raised by a half of
a point. Most garden plants and grass prefer a pH in a range of
6.3-6.5.
A soil test will allow you to figure out how much lime actually needs
to
be applied to be effective. Our soil is naturally acidic and usually
needs lime added every couple of years.

The leaves will be falling soon. Keep the lawn areas raked frequently.
Accumulated leaves on the lawn can lead to winter kill. Shredded leaves
can be used as mulch in the garden beds or added to the compost pile.

Water gardens and ponds can be covered with netting this time of the
year to keep the leaves from accumulating in the bottom. Decaying
leaves
are harmful to the fish and add to the accumulation of debris that
needs
to be removed in the spring. Trim back any dying foliage on the pond
plants and discard the dead annuals before setting up the netting. Cut
back on fish feeding over the next few weeks. Once the water
temperature
reaches 50 degrees stop feeding them until next spring.

Beth Nardone, botanist, is a resident of Hillsborough and is the
Nursery
Manager at the Belle Mead Co-Op. Questions and comments can be sent to
bethtanical@patmedia.net