On Gardening/October Garden Tips

10-14-97
University Park, Pa. -- Frost has been a regular visitor to many areas, so now is a good time to begin removing annual flower and vegetable plants that have been killed.

If the material is not diseased or weedy, place it in the compost pile for later return to the garden. As you clean out flower beds, mark the spots where you have late starting perennials coming up next spring. The markers will help you avoid damaging the perennials as you work the beds in spring.

There is still time to get the rest of the spring flowering bulbs planted before it really turns cold and you won't want to be out in the garden. Make certain to check all the shelves in the garage for that extra package of bulbs you purchased in a hurry and set aside until there was time to get them in the ground. When you finally find them next spring it will be too late to plant them.

Take a close look at your flower and shrub beds. Now would be a good time to edge those beds if the grass has begun to invade. The sod that is cut out can also be placed in the compost pile. If there is a lot of exposed soil along the edges, apply additional mulch to these areas.

A number of narrow leaf evergreens will be shedding their older needles this month. White pine is probably the most noticeable because it happens rather quickly. These will be the inner needles that drop and there is no cause for alarm. In fact these fallen needles make an excellent mulch for azalea, rhododendron and pieris.

Don't put the lawn mower away yet. Lawns should be mowed as long as they are growing. Regular mowing will prevent the grass from matting under the winter snows. Grass under these conditions is more subject to disease and winter dieback.

It is too late to do any significant pruning on roses now because they would be more subject to winter injury. However, make certain you clean up all the fallen leaves from under the plants to reduce the potential for black spot and other diseases next spring. If you hill soil around the base of grafted hybrid roses, make certain you bring to it in from another spot in the garden. Don't dig up soil from the base of the plant, this damages the roots and exposes them to winter damage.

If you have been bothered by bagworms this past summer, now is a good time to hand-pick the bags from evergreens and other plants in the garden. Check deciduous plants as well -- bagworm is not exclusive to evergreens. This practice will eliminate the spring hatch from over-wintered eggs inside the bag.

As the gardening season winds down, so does the demand for gardening supplies. Keep your eyes open for special prices and sales on hand tools and power equipment to be given as gifts or used next year. This is a good time also to evaluate the quality of your existing tools. Clean and oil all metal items. Cutting tools should be sharpened before they are stored. Clean the fertilizer spreader before it is stored. Fertilizer salts will quickly corrode the metal parts by spring. In fact ,it is recommended that these spreaders be cleaned after each use to prevent damage.

Keep an eye on fruits and vegetables that may have been stored back in September. Early removal of spoiled items will often preserve the quality of remaining material. Mold and mildew often indicate elevated temperatures or excess moisture. Adjust the temperature and moisture levels as needed.

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**Dr. Robert Nuss is a horticulturist at Penn State. He coordinates all extension horticulture programs. He has bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in ornamental horticulture and has been on the Penn State faculty since 1966.