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Lesliedon2000
My Weather
| | Posted on Thursday, October 20, 2005 - 09:01 am: |   
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Hi all. I was interested in what you are doing in your garden now that fall has arrived and some of you are even experiencing your first frosts. Is anyone reworking a bed? I am hard at work trying to get my beds back to good. It is such hard work and there are times my back screams for me to STOP, but then I look at some of your gardens and I get all inspired again! I have heavy clay soils, so I am trying to dig deep and add some compost. I'm also digging up whole sections of the bed and enriching the soil under established perennials. I'm not sure if this is necessary or not so I was wondering what you do in older, established sections of your garden. For my birthday i got 100's of tulip, daffodil and iris bulbs, so I've really got my work cut out for me!
Lesliedon2000
- Georgia,
Zone "7"
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Missgarden
| | Posted on Thursday, October 20, 2005 - 01:21 pm: |
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I think that for the established beds spreading compost and or manure on top and gently incorporating it into the soil would be enough. Nutrients will work their way down with rain.
As far as bulb numbers I wish you happy planting :)...I managed to plant just over 30 bulbs recently after work and I can't imagine planting 100s. Although you will be rewarded with a beautiful display in spring.
In general I'm pretty much done for this year. There's a few parsley plants I need to harvest, a few remaining tomato plants to compost, pull a few weeds here and there and top up some areas with mulch. All big projects are on hold until next year.
Missgarden
- Ontario,
Zone "5b"
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Lilybeetle
| | Posted on Wednesday, October 26, 2005 - 04:49 am: |
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So far this fall - I am being really lazy. I haven't cut anything back which will make for a labour intensive spring garden clean up. I amend my soil which is also heavy, heavy clay throughout the season and usually throw a few random handfuls of bonemeal throughout the garden in the fall and again in spring. I plant most of my daffodils under shrubs so that I don't have to face the dying foliage in summer - here they don't die back until late July - August. By planting them this way I get to enjoy them in the spring and as they are finishing the shrubs are leafing out and hide the strapy leaves. I planted about 300 new bulbs this year - but I have planted most in groups of 20 to 60 so it wasn't a big chore. The task I don't really enjoy is wrapping tender shrubs and protecting roses and other less hardy perennials. I won't start that until the ground freezes - I use thermal blankets which I staple around the shrubs or lay on top of ground perennials - secured with rocks. The roses will get a 12+ inch cover of peat moss and/or the balcony soil from my large containers.
Lilybeetle
- Ontario,
Zone "4B"
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