Ask an Expert: Gardening Tips for Fall by Bette Oswell

Weather changes signaling an autumn are also important indicators for local gardeners.

Some answers have been edited for length and clarity.

MANISTEE NEWS ADVOCATE: What should gardeners think about ahead of the colder months?

BETTE OSWELL: I already have my garden planned in my head for next year; I'll print it later (and) when I have time I'll add notes on what to do and what not to do next season.

NEWS ADVOCATE: What steps should be taken to get an early start to next year's growing season?

OSWELL: It's harvest time and I'm cleaning up any dead plants to prevent disease in future plants. Anything ordered will be removed from my 50 x 50 garden area. I will dispose of rotting plants by burning them or throwing them on the weed pile. Because of our zoning, certain flowers such as gladioli and dahlias need to be overwintered. Its bulbs and roots are carefully dug up, dried and stored in a dry part of my basement. Then there are the tools and pots that need to be cleaned and put away.

NEWS ADVOCATE: What kind of flowers or plants should I plant in the fall?

OSWELL: Fall is a great time to share plants like daylilies, hostas, and astilbes. This and transplanting is ideal in the fall, as long as it's four to six weeks before the first frost. It is best to cut and clean old raspberry bushes and plant bulbs such as tulips, daffodils, crocuses and garlic in autumn.

NEWS DEFENDER: Any plants you recommend for wintering indoors?

OSWELL: I have plenty of room indoors to spend the winter with my geraniums and begonias. Geraniums are left in their pots and stored on the east and west windows and require minimal maintenance during the winter. The begonias will die back and be allowed to dry out so I can stack the pots they are in until April when I start watering them. The tubers are never disturbed. I've had great luck with this method.

Vegetables like peas, beets, lettuce, and cabbage that tolerate or thrive in cold weather are called cold crops, and here in Michigan they can be planted as early as March.

NEWS ADVOCATE: What kind of maintenance or work do you do with your own gardens in the fall?

OSWELL: We usually add chopped leaves between the rows of plants in our garden in early summer. They help keep weeds to a minimum and retain moisture. By autumn almost all have rotted and can be plowed to improve the soil in preparation for the first cold harvests.

At this time of year, the growth of new flowers makes it particularly tempting to prune old ones, but the pods of many plants contain nutrients that help birds get through tough times. I'm waiting for spring to cut them. Some plants, like chrysanthemums and pansies, flower in the fall before winter.

AVOCADO NEWS: Do you have any resources you recommend for people who have questions about seasonal gardening in our hardiness zone?

OSWELL: I've found the Farmers' Almanac website to be a great resource for managing my garden, but most of the time I just google to confirm what I already know.

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