When people think about gardening, they usually think “spring.” Here in Northern Michigan, spring is when everything in the garden is starting to turn green and wake up again after a long winter, so it’s natural for us to pull on our gardening gloves and get to work at that time! However, fall is also a great time to get into the garden, and the work we do in the fall has a direct impact on our garden in the spring.
In this blog post, we’re looking at a few fall gardening tasks that will help you when it comes time for spring gardening. Read on to learn the what and the why behind fall cleanups, lawn aerations, and fall planting.
What is a fall cleanup?
Every fall, our Garden Care Team performs fall cleanups to prepare landscapes for winter. The tasks performed during a fall cleanup vary depending on the needs of the landscape, but they often include tasks like:
- Cutting back herbaceous perennials – “Cutting back” plants refers to cutting the stems so that there are only a few inches left sticking out of the ground. This is most important to accomplish if a plant has suffered from pests or diseases over the season. Cutting back the effected portion of the plant–and removing it from the growing area–will reduce the risk of reoccurrence next spring.
- Pruning – Fall is a great time to prune trees and shrubs, whether to shape them or remove branches that are damaged (or may cause damage). This can help trees and shrubs withstand winter better, when heavy winds and snow can break weaker branches.
- Leaf removal – Fallen leaves can have their benefits, but if they gather too thickly on a lawn or garden, they can become a wet blanket that slowly suffocates the plants or grass beneath. Removing leaves in the fall helps prevent this kind of damage.
Why do fall cleanups matter?
Fall cleanups have lots of benefits to the health of the garden. Reducing risk of disease reoccurrence, preventing potential damage over the winter, and promoting stronger growth in the spring are just a few of the benefits to your landscape. But your yard isn’t the only thing that will benefit from a good fall cleanup–you will, too! Checking off the list of fall gardening chores means there’s less cleanup work to be done in the spring, meaning you can jump right into the fun stuff, like putting in new plants or just sitting back to enjoy your outdoor living space.
What is lawn aeration?
There are lots of ways to get a lush lawn–fertilization, weed prevention, pest control–but one of the most effective is actually a process called aeration. Aeration is the process of loosening up soil so that roots can grow better, finding water and nutrients more easily. There are a few different ways aeration is performed:
- Core aeration – This method of aeration gets its name from the ‘cores’ that are left behind by a device that is pushed over the lawn and removes small plugs of soil. These cores break up the layer of thatch that naturally grows over time, as well as creating pockets in the soil, enabling water and nutrients to find their way to grass roots more easily. The cores also act as a compost that eventually adds more nutrients back into the soil.
- Biological aeration – Unlike core aeration, biological aeration doesn’t use a mechanical process to break up the soil. Rather, it’s a liquid application that reduces thatch, increases drought tolerance, promotes root growth, and creates air pockets in the soil. If you’re not a fan of lots of little cores around your yard, biological aeration is a great alternative.
- Airspade aeration – While core and biological aerations are performed at a more regular cadence, airspade aerations are performed less frequently and in areas that are deeply compacted. Airspade aerations break up soil by using high-pressure air, targeting a deeper zone than core and biological aerations. They’re often used around the roots of large, established trees, because they break up compacted areas with less damage to roots.
Why does lawn aeration matter?
If you have a lawn, it’s likely that you want to keep it looking green and full all season long. The way to do that is to keep it healthy, which isn’t always as easy as it seems! The grasses typically used in lawns have notoriously shallow roots, making them susceptible to quickly drying out, and a thick layer of thatch can impede the flow of water, nutrients, and even air to those roots. Lawn aerations solve these problems by breaking up soil in a way that helps grass roots grow stronger and healthier, and healthier roots leads to a lawn that stays greener longer.
What is fall planting?
Spring is the season when garden centers open up again, when our gardens are coming back to life, and when all those colorful new plants begin to entice us. And spring is a great time to plant in Northern Michigan because temperatures are relatively cool and we generally receive a lot of rain that helps new plants establish strong roots. Fall planting is great for exactly these reasons, too! When planting in the fall, follow the same steps that you would for spring planting:
- Prepare your soil – If you’re working in an area with hard, clay-like soil or loose, sandy soil, pre-planting is a great time to help improve soil quality. Adding in compost–or even mulched up fallen leaves!–will add nutrients and improve soil structure in your garden.
- Dig in – When you dig holes for your plants, be sure to dig a hole a bit larger in circumference than the pot your plant comes in. This creates more space for the roots to grow and expand into their new surroundings.
- Water well – After amending, digging, and planting, it’s time to water your new plants. To help roots establish and grow deeply, it’s important to give your new plants good, long waterings in the days after planting. Often, fall weather helps with this, and plant roots will continue to grow into their new surroundings throughout the fall and even into the winter.
Why does fall planting matter?
Cooler, wetter weather is an ideal time for introducing new trees, shrubs, and perennials to the garden. Fall is especially ideal, because there are fewer pests to damage new plants, and plant roots will continue to establish as long as the ground isn’t frozen. Fall planting also gives plants a jump-start on spring, often leading to larger, healthier growth.
Prepare for next spring now
Fall isn’t just for pumpkin spice and watching the leaves fall–it’s also a great time to get a few more things done in the garden before winter moves in. Whether you’re tackling fall cleanups day-by-day, investing in a greener lawn, or adding some new plants to your landscape, you’re helping to create a more successful spring in your outdoor living space. The results of all this work might be slow in coming, but trust us–they’re worth it!