During the past few weeks, I have been working on the traditional fall clean-up required to put my perennial and vegetable gardens to bed. A couple of weeks ago, I began with pulling up my tomato, pea and pepper plants. Next, I continued to weed all of the beds and remove excess debris.
I have continued to water my perennials and herbs, and have just begun to cut down most of my perennials to about four inches from the ground. My herbs need limited care. I usually trim the thyme, sage, and oregano. I have already trimmed the chives, and removed almost all of my bunching onions. I will use sage, thyme, and parsley for my Thanksgiving turkey, and probably will still have some rosemary left for a dish of potatoes this fall.
One of the most important steps for preparing the yard for the winter cold would be to keep woody plants, shrubs, and evergreens well watered before the freezing weather begins. When the dry days of Fall arrive, try to remember to water these plants to allow them to protect their roots from winter damage. I usually determine how much rain has fallen for the week in September, and remember to water these plants if less than one inch has fallen. I continue this process through mid October, and then as the leaves are falling, I remember to water the shrubs one more time before freezing weather arrives.
Recently, I had the opportunity to test a fireman style hose nozzle by ProAccessories. The nozzle is made of heavy-duty brass, which will not corrode over the years. The grip is made of heavy-duty rubber with a very comfortable hold. The stream can be adjusted from a gentle fan spray up to a stream of 40 feet, depending on the type of hose used. This product works very nicely for my fall clean-up routine. For more information, find the product on amazon.com
I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.
angel food garden 