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Many gardeners do not even consider fall gardening because of the winter frosts that might make an early appearance. On the contrary, fall gardening will result in excellent vegetables and will extend crops long after spring planted plants are finished. Vegetables produced from fall gardening are sometimes sweeter and milder than those grow in the summer and offer a brand new taste to the same old veggies.

What you choose to grow during you fall gardening will depend on your available space and what you like to eat, just like spring plants. Even the crops that enjoy the heat, such as tomatoes, sweet potatoes, okra, and peppers, will produce until frosts hit, which can be pretty late in the year in southern areas. However, there are some plants that will quit towards the end of summer like snap-beans, summer squash, and cucumbers. If these vegetables are planted around the middle of the summer they can be harvested until the first frosts as well. Hardy, tough vegetables will grow until the temperature is as low as 20 degrees, but those that aren’t as strong will only be able to grow through light frosts. Remember that if you have root and tuber plants and the tops are killed by a freeze the edible part can be saved if a large amount of mulch is used.

When fall gardening, make sure and pick the vegetables with the shortest growing season so they can be full grown and harvested before the frost arrives. Most seed packages will be labeled “early season”, or you can find the seeds boasting the fewest days to maturity. You may want to go after your seeds for fall gardening in spring or early summer; they are usually not kept in stock towards the end of summer. If they are stored in a cool and dry location they will keep until you are ready to plant.

In order to know exactly when the best time to start fall gardening, you must know about when the first hard frost will hit your area. One of the best ways to tell this is by a Farmer’s Almanac. They will give you exact dates and are rarely wrong. You will also need to know exactly how long it is going to take your plants to mature.

To get your soil ready for fall gardening you must first remove any leftover spring/summer crops and weeds. Crops leftover from the last season can end up spreading bacteria and disease if left in the garden. Spread a couple of inches of compost or mulch over the garden area to increase the nutrients, however, if spring plants were fertilized heavily it may not need much, if any. Till the top layer of soil, wet it down, and let it set for about 12-24 hours. Once this has been done, you are ready to start planting.

Many gardeners will run from fall gardening so they don’t have to deal with frosts, but if tough, sturdy vegetables are planted they can withstand a few frosts and give you some wonderful tasting produce. Fall gardening gives you the chance to enjoy your vegetable garden for at least a little bit more time.

Well the summer certainly has turned up the heat here at the urban garden. The temperature has been hitting the upper 80’s and this weekend the 90’s. These are the days I really appreciate the 5am to 1pm shift we work. When the temperature gets hot it is time to be a little more cautious with your plants. Be sure that the ground does not dry out high temperatures promote quick drying conditions and especially for newer plantings with less established root systems it is important to keep the plants watered.

About a month ago we planted some trees and several almost immediately dropped most of their leaves. I thought that they may need to be replaced but I know a lot of times trees that are under stress from high heat will drop some of their leaves to save the  energy and moisture . We hit the trees with a dose of  a product called Super Thrive which is a combination of vitamins and supplements that you can find on the internet. We gave them two applications 2 weeks apart and they sprung right back to life and started popping buds. In fact one of the trees actually started to flower. They are all leafed back out and appear to be doing fine.

We are trimming the evergreen hedges here this week and next. It is a big chore but they recommend not to trim in any month with an R in it so that the plants have time to harden off any new growth from the trimmings before the freezing weather arrives. So as this is the last month without an R coming up tomorrow here we go.

Also I have been working on the irrigation system a lot. I have had to replace 14 heads that have been knocked off or run over in the last 3 weeks.I have to check the system almost daily as if one head is missing then the whole zone does not receive enough water. That is a time consumer when you have 44 irrigation zones to go through.

It is pretty hectic running a large grounds operation but somehow we always manage to get the big items taken care of and even find time to do the fine tuning stuff from time to time. If I just had 4 more guys. Oh well I just need 6 numbers to win the lottery guess I have just about the same odds on both those requests.

Heat, drought, disease, insects and mechanical damage lawns do take a beating! Today I would like to give you a quick lesson in repairing the lawn and making it that lush green carpet that you love to walk bare foot through. As I live and work in the Midwest most of this article will be about cool season grasses Kentucky Bluegrass ,Perennial Rye Grass, and Turf Type Tall Fescues.

The Basics

All turf grass plants need certain basic elements to thrive and survive so we will go over them here real quick.

1. Water - Turf grass uses a lot of water and in order to maintain vigorous growth must have water. I recommend that you plan on supplementing rainfall to ensure that your lawn receives about an inch to an inch and a half of water a week.
2. Food - Your lawn requires a lot of food to maintain active growth and to keep it healthy. Most lawns require 4 to 5 lbs of nitrogen a year. I recommend spacing the applications out beginning of April middle of May end of June, end of August, and the beginning of October.
3. Good Soil Conditions - We are not all blessed with good friable top soil in fact I am sure lots of us have to battle heavy clay. There are soil amendments such as gypsum that can help to loosen the clay. Also very important is soil ph. Proper ph of the soil is important in gaining optimum growth. A soil test performed by your Agricultural Extension Services can give you important recommendations on how to adjust your soil ph.
4. Light - Turf grasses do best with a lot of light some will tolerate light shade but the majority prefer 8 to 10 plus hours of sunlight a day.
5. Temperature - As we are dealing with Cool Season Grasses here in the Midwest the turf likes a temperature between 55 degrees and 70 degrees this is when they are at there best. During this period the grasses is growing vigorously and is lest susceptible to damage.
6. Proper Cultural Practice - Mowing your lawn plays a big part in it’s health. I recommend cutting at a height of 3 1/2 inches. The taller the grass blades the deeper the roots. Also never remove more than 1/3 the leaf blade at a time.

Okay enough of the basics this was just an overview so you would understand what requirements a healthy lawn needs. Now down to the nitty gritty of renovating your lawn. The best time for lawn renovation is in the early fall here in the Chicagoland area I like to start the last week of August.

Here Are The Basic Steps

1. First 5 or 6 weeks before you are ready to renovate spray for weeds (July 15th) * unless the lawn is totally shot then in that case see complete renovation below.
2. Before you begin cut your grass short maybe 2 inches. After the lawn has been moved use a dethatcher with slicing blades to remove the thatch. This will bring a lot of dead material up to the surface. Never go in more than 2 directions and always at a 90 degree angle. Now take a bagging mower and start vacuuming up the thatch. This will take a while and the bag will fill quickly. You will end up with lots of thatch so be prepared with a lot of bags to dispose of it in. Once done run over the whole yard one more time.
3. Now fill your rotary spreader with seed and walk over the entire lawn area in two different directions. The seed will fall down between the grass plants and contact the newly exposed soil below. It would not be a bad idea at this point to walk around the whole lawn dragging a rake behind you to knock any seeds that fell on the grass plants down into the soil. When overseeding like this I like to use about 5lbs of grass seed per 1000 sq feet.
4. Next apply a good starter fertilizer to the entire area. Sometimes this is also known as a winterizer the garden supply store will give you what you need.
5. Water lightly daily to keep the surface moist for at least 28 days.
6. Water lightly daily to keep the surface moist for at least 28 days.
7. Water lightly daily to keep the surface moist for at least 28 days.
8. Sounds a little redundant but that is what causes 90 percent of renovation failures not keeping the soil surface moist during the first 28 days. The grass seed will start to germinate then it drys up and dies.
9. Do not cut the grass for the first two weeks then when you do , do not bag it for at least the first 3 mowing’s.
10. Any weeds that may sprout can be treated after the third mowing.

Total Renovation

Total renovation is a very extreme method reserved for severely damaged lawns that have at least 60 percent weed cover. This may not be for the faint of heart.

1. Total Kill - A week or 10 days before you are ready to renovate spray the entire lawn area with Roundup ( Glyphosate ) . Be careful not to get this on any of the shrubs trees or desirable plant material. Also make sure to wash your shoes throughly before walking on any lawns you intend to keep. Take Your time and be sure you cover all the lawn area.
2. After 5 days check to make sure that there are no areas of bright green if you find them hit this area with one more spray.
3. Now follow steps 2 thru 10 above. It is recommended that you go over the lawn in 4 or five different directions and do not vacuum if you are using a slit seeder instead of a dethatcher .

Again the above method is very extreme but will result in a beautiful new lawn in as little as 10 weeks.

Well here we are at the end of July. I know that a lot of people think of Labor Day as the traditional end of summer. It is not but because of all the social activities and kids returning to school in certainly feels that way sometimes.

I like the end of summer myself because it usually signals a more temperate climate and weather. The reason I am writing about this now is to get you to start thinking about the upcoming milder weather and your gardens.

In The Vegetable Garden

Now is the time to start planning for a late crop of vegetables that do well in cooler weather. Spinich , radishes, lettuce, and broccoli to name a few can all be planted in late summer. A Late summer planting can extend your gardening season all the way to Halloween if the weather coperates. So if you have not tried it before why not give it a go. Use fast maturing varieties and you can extend your days of harvest for home grown vegetables on the dinner table.

The Lawn

A lot of lawns are looking beat up right about now. With August fast approaching I recommend that you think about dethatching and over seeding your lawns about the last week of August. If you are looking to resod this is a good time as well. Lawn renovations done now will allow the turf grass a long wet cool period to establish before the onset of winter and provide you with a wonderful lawn next spring.

The Garden

Late August Early September is a great time to divide most of your perennial plants. They will be able to establish themselves and get a leg up for next year. You will actually be helping them as they will be less crowded and able to return with lots of vim and vigor.

This is just a short list of items to think about for the upcoming month if you plan for these activities they will be easy to implement and make a big difference in your garden.

Coming Tomorrow Lawn Renovation 101