We’re just a couple of days away from the official start of fall which has us looking forward to Autumn colors, decorating our front porches with pumpkins, cornstalks, and mums, and all of the fun fairs and activities that the new season has to offer.

With everything going on, it can be easy to forget about your garden, but good news! We have an updated, easy fall checklist you can reference throughout the season to make sure your yard is in its best shape before winter hits.

Be sure to stop by Van Wilgen’s for all the plants and supplies you need. We’re here to help!

Put on your garden shoes, gloves and hat. It’s time to get back outside and tend to your yard. It missed you and suffered during the August heat. Ugh! Poor, poor yards.

FALL TO DO:

•Fertilize all trees, shrubs & perennial flowers with one of Espoma’s “Tones” at half the rate instructed on the bag.

•Use Plant-Tone for most deciduous shrubs except Hydrangeas. Use on Arborvitae & Boxwood.

•Use Plant-Tone for all perennial flowers.

•Use Holly-Tone for all evergreen shrubs such as Rhododendrons, Azaleas, & Andromeda.

•Use Holly-Tone for all evergreen trees & Dogwood trees.

•Use Tree-Tone for most deciduous trees such as Cherry, Maple, & Fruit trees.

•Fertilize the lawn:

•Use Greenview’s Lawn Food in the green bag for a great conventional choice.

•Use Espoma’s Summer Revitalizer if you want a boost of Iron for quick green-up.

A good organic choice:

•Use Espoma’s Organic All Season Lawn Food to help with summer recovery.

•Seed the lawn:

•Now is the perfect time to seed. Warm soil and cooler nights make for quick seed germination.

•Start a new lawn or thicken up an existing lawn.

•Use Van Wilgen’s Premium grass seed.

•Use Greenview’s Starter Fertilizer in the blue bag or Espoma’s Organic Lawn Starter.

• Begin Veggie garden clean up:

•Get rid of any dead plant debris.

•Purchase a cover crop of Winter Rye, Buckwheat, or Clover.

•Refresh soil with Espoma’s Garden-Tone.

•Apply Garden Lime in all beds except for where potatoes are planted.

•Think about bringing houseplants inside:

•Spray all plants with Bonide’s All Season Horticultural Oil or Neem Oil before

bringing indoors to control hitchhiking insects.

•Treat all non-edible plants with Bonide’s Systemic Houseplant Food.

• Fertilize all houseplants. There are many good choices:

•Conventional: Van Wilgen’s All-Purpose Slow Release Plant Food, Van Wilgen’s All Purpose Water Soluble Plant Food, VanWilgen’s Root Boost, or Bonide’s Liquid Plant Food.

Now your chores are done. Kick off your garden shoes and relax! Come see us at Van Wilgen’s. We would love to help.