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Tom's Monthly Gotta-Do's

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September is the time when gardeners begin to feel like heading back into the landscape. Sure there are some hot days but the morning and late afternoon hours can be very pleasant. Now is the time to restart the vegetable garden. You are not going to raise all the crops your family needs but how about a few.

Start with tomatoes and peppers. Fresh from the garden fruits have a great taste and just these two crops alone can save you some money. But hurry as these crops need to be in the ground soon. Also, add plantings of all the other warm season crops. Now, I have a few hints for you.

First, improve sandy soils with organic matter. You can buy bags of garden soil, peat moss and manure or you might hunt for a local source of free or inexpensive compost. If you are considering fresh manure let it compost for a while. Residents are not as resistant to animal related pests as farm families might be. The rule with fresh manure is to let it compost for about 120 days then it can be added to the garden.

Spruce up the landscape with some new flowers. Summer plants are often weary by now and some new color is a welcome site. It does not have to be big beds but just containers of color would be fine. Select from the durable types mentioned in one of this month’s features to have flowers into the fall.

Lastly complete the final feedings of the year. Toward the end of September and early October is the feeding time for lawns, shrubs, citrus and perennials. You can use a traditional fertilizer but the new slow release products give a much longer feeding time. They are also less likely to pollute and give you a full value for your money spent.

So what are you waiting for? Now is the time to get outdoors and complete many chores on the list of this month’s Gotta Do’s.


Tom's Gotta-do's for September, 2012
Vegetable & fruit care:
A new gardening season starts now; improve poor or old soils with lots of organic matter.
Clear weeds from garden sites and till compacted soils prior to planting.
Tomato, pepper and eggplant need to be the first crops planted.
Only keep healthy older tomato plants from spring into the fall.
Additional warm season crops need to be in the ground before early October.
Harvest sweet potatoes when the ground swells with the thick roots at the base of the plants.
Provide trellises for tomatoes, cucumbers and similar growing crops.
Use mulches to conserve water, control weeds and keep soil off leafy crops.
Add vegetables to containers for patio and balcony gardens.
Irrigate citrus trees once or twice a week during dry weather to maintain the fruit.
Start seedlings of fall cool season crops later in the month.
Lawn Care:
Lawns had a tough summer; start to control weeds and patch damaged sections.
Many lawns have a hungry look; try an iron or minor nutrient product until feeding time.
Check local ordinances to determine when lawn feedings can begin
Fall lawn feedings begin in late September where permitted.
Add new sod or plugs to summer damaged lawns.
Moths cause no lawn damage but start looking for sod webworms and treat as needed.
Chinch bugs usually continue into fall; treat at first sign of turf decline.
Fire ants are frequently found in lawns; spot treat mounds then treat the entire lawn.
Test your soil acidity and adjust as needed.
Dry weather can return this month; wait to irrigate turf until leaf blades start to curl.
Water turf separately from ornamental plantings.
Lawn portions with grassy weeds are usually best removed and the areas sodded.
Begin fall weed control treatments at the end of the month.
Landscape Care:
Many landscapes have filled with weeds this summer; make removal a fall project
Ants are living in many container plantings; treat with an insecticide labeled for this use.
Check containers for plugged drainage holes; repot as needed.
Trim out of bounds shrubs and trees.
Remove declining annuals and replant with fresh warm season flowers.
Groom perennials to remove old flower heads and out of control shoots
Reduce root rot and similar problems at planting by adding new soil to container gardens.
Till flower beds and add organic matter or garden soils to sandy soils.
Chrysanthemums make attractive fall flowers but they only last a few weeks in the heat.
Give poinsettias a final pruning in early September; continue feedings.
Add new trees, shrubs, palms & sagos.
Feed palms lightly through October or use a slow release fertilizer 3 to 4 times a year.
Begin late September shrub and perennial feedings for fall.
Feed hanging baskets and orchids every other week.
Foliage & house plant care:
Gradually reduce feedings and waterings of Christmas and holiday cactus for fall.
Decide which plants to bring indoors for the cooler months.
Perform a final pruning and check for pests on foliage plants to eventually move indoors.
Transplant foliage plants needing new containers to prepare for cooler fall weather.
Feed foliage plants monthly or use a slow release fertilizer according to the label.
Remove dust and pests with soapy water.
 Make cuttings to increase the foliage plant collection.
Replace declining plants for fall.


September 2012 Plantings

Flowers: Ageratum, angelonia, begonia, blue daze, butterfly weed, cat's whiskers, celosia, cleome, coleus, coreopsis, cosmos, garden mums, gaura, gazania, gerbera, goldenrod, gomphrena, heliotrope, impatiens, jacobinia, lantana, marigold, melampodium, nicotiana, pentas, periwinkle, ruellia, salvia, sunflower, sweet alyssum, torenia, verbena and zinnia.

Vegetables: Early plantings include lima bean, snap bean, corn, cucumber, eggplant, pepper, southern pea, rhubarb, squash, and tomato; End of the month crops include broccoli, cabbage, celery, collard, endive, lettuce, mustard, onion, radish, strawberry and turnip.

Herbs: Anise, basil, bay laurel, borage, chives, coriander, dill, lemon balm, lavender, Mexican tarragon, mint, parsley, rosemary, sage, sweet fennel, sweet marjoram and thyme.

Bulbs: African iris, agapanthus, amaryllis, blackberry lily, bulbine, calla lily, crinum, crocosmia, day lily, gladiolus, kaffir lily, narcissus, society garlic, spider lily, rain lilies and walking iris.


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