Goodness, my garden friend! Can you believe autumn is here and we’re talking about what to do in the October garden?
Contrary to what most folks think, fall is a busy season on the flower farm. Annuals have finished blooming, the intense labor of cleanup has already begun and the planting of spring crops is only just beginning.
As a flower farmer and home gardener, I keep the average first frost date top-of-mind this time of year. Here in gardening zone 6, the first frost typically occurs between October 17 and 31. Of course, I hope it comes as late as possible, so I have more time to tidy up and get cool-season flowers and perennials in the ground.
Here are a few things gardeners and flower farmers need to do in early October:
- Start pulling summer annuals if you haven’t already. Here at the farm, we compost all our spent blooms and foliage.
- Begin pre-soaking ranunculus and anemone corms.
- Collect for next growing season seeds from those annuals and perennials that have proven their worth.
- Start thinking ahead about cold frames. These are simple structures used to start the spring gardening season a few weeks early and extend the fall gardening season a few weeks longer. Be thinking about the materials you’ll need to build a cold frame, where you’ll place it and how you’ll build up the soil.
- Tag all your dahlias while they’re still in bloom so you can identify them accurately when you begin to dig up the tubers.
Speaking of dahlias, they put on their best performance from late summer to early autumn. With a little help, they will continue to dazzle up until frost!
The photo below shows a magnificent dahlia that just bloomed in our field. It comes late in the season but is cherished just the same. Remember, cut dahlias at the stage at which you need them because once harvested, they do not continue to open. I love to cut at the stage shown, when petals have not completely unfolded. When working with dinnerplate dahlias especially, blooms at this stage add interesting detail to floral arrangements.
Deadheading is required to encourage more blooms and make sure you have blooms when you need them for fresh bouquets. In the photo below, you see I use a floral bucket to catch all the spent blooms. I deadhead each evening when the sun goes down.
I hope this season finds you well organized and planning for seasons to come. I’ll be back with more gardening tips later.
Happy Autumn!
Pamela Anthony
Beehind Thyme Farm & Garden