Don’t do your fall gardening in the spring anymore

Strange, when it comes to planting time, many gardeners don’t even think of doing fall gardening. These gardeners and even some gardening catalogs, still have antiquated gardening info. But, too many otherwise knowledge gardeners think of planting only in the spring.

Sure, it’s true that in early spring, a plant does begin some new root growth and it does continue to develop, and top growth does begin then. But that same plant planted in later spring gets a much slower start due to cooler soils.

Whereas, in the fall, the warm garden soil encourages early root growth. Roots continue to grow through the winter until the ground freezes. In areas with mild winters, roots may continue to grow. While the fall-planted plants are becoming well established, the spring-planted plant lags far behind. That’s why, in much of the country, fall is the ideal time to plant all kinds of things-- from cool-season veggies, turf grasses and perennials to both evergreen and trees and shrubs.

Plant in the fall and your plants will grow better autumn-atically

Of course, there are plenty of other good reasons to plant in the fall, too, such as dependable rainfall. So, when summer does arrive, the fall-planted plant is far better equipped to deal with heat and drought, largely due to its already well-established root system. The cooler weather brings fewer pest and disease problems also. Also, many plants are on sale at garden centers at that time, which makes fall gardening good for you, too.

Though, fall officially begins with the autumn equinox in late September, fall weather varies considerably across the country. The ideal fall garden plans for starting a garden six weeks before the first hard frost. In general, the window of opportunity for most gardens is September and October.

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