How to Grow the Best Fall Garden by Nancy May

Late August and early September is the time of year where vacations are ending and kids are heading back to school. Just because outdoor activities are dwindling down doesn't mean you can't continue tending to your garden and home landscaping. Fall is the garden's most forgotten season. In most North American gardens, the fall is an underused season for gardening. By planting a fall garden, you take advantage of this beautiful season and can enjoy your garden a little longer. We spend so much time creating beauty from spring's first flowers throughout the summer we often forget to reap the rewards during the fall. Whether you want to plant vegetation or shrubbery and flowers, there are some wonderful plants and vegetation that put on their best show between August and October.

The fall is a great time to grow some cool season vegetables. Typically, vegetables that grow best in cool weather are leafy greens, root crops and various members of the cabbage family. Beets, carrots, peas, turnips, radishes, spinach, broccoli, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts may be planted in early August for fall harvesting. Some of them will even tolerate light frosts. These are wonderful vegetables to grow this time of year, and taste so much better than store bought produce. Plant a fall garden and enjoy homegrown veggies into the cooler months of the year.

Fall is a satisfying time of the year for the perennial gardener. There are still a good 6 to 8 weeks of beautiful fall gardens ahead. Perennials that drooped and faded in the heat of summer may re-bloom, and the fall-blooming plants are in their full glory. Go for colors that complement the falling leaves. Try some of the many perennials (begonias or goldenrods), annuals (mums) and shrubs (Sumac or Fothergilla) that shine against the spectacular backdrop of the changing seasons. Choose bright gold or orange or even red perennials. These will typically bloom until the first frost of the season.

During the fall, it is time to begin thinking about winter and preparing your perennial beds accordingly. There are a number of cleanup and winter preparation chores that you should perform. As fall progresses you will want to start clearing leaves out of your gardening beds. If left to mat down thickly they may create conditions that cause root rot. You can use the shredded leaves to mulch your garden. Also, early October is a good time to prune back herbaceous plants that will be killed to the ground with the first frost.

Take advantage of the cool months after summer to beautify your garden or landscaping for fall and prepare it for a cold winter. The more tending you are to your gardening year-round the more effortless it looks with each passing season.

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Lifestyle Builders is a leading home builder and developer of new homes in Midlothian, Virginia. Our homes are built in such neighborhoods and communities throughout the Richmond Virginia area.