Turf. Winterize your sprinkling system!

Turf Winterize your sprinkling system!

Turf Apply a quality Fall Fertilizer

Turf Give your lawn a buzzcut

Turf Cut WAY BACK on your water!!! (or even better, quit watering all together)

Perennials Cut back to the ground after several hard frosts How do I know what to Cut?

Perennials Cut back to the ground after several hard frosts 1. Is it hardy?

Perennials Cut back to the ground after several hard frosts 2. Does it add winter interest?

Perennials Cut back to the ground after several hard frosts 3. Does it provide food or shelter for birds or wildlife?

Perennials Plant more plants!!!

Perennials Divide spring flowering perennials

Ornamental grass Cut them down if you aren t going to keep them for winter interest

Trees and shrubs Wait until late winter or early spring to do any pruning.

Trees and shrubs Make sure they are well watered if we ve had a really dry summer (which we have)

Trees and shrubs Wrap trunks of young, tender, or fruit trees Wrap Arborvitae, Junipers, or other evergreens that want to fall open

vegetables Add mulch to break down over the winter

vegetables Till organic matter into the soil to improve soil quality

vegetables If you garden in raised beds or containers, consider composting fall debris (leaves and plants) for next year.

vegetables Till spent plants to destroy insect eggs that overwinter

vegetables Save your seeds!!!

Saving seeds Hybrid vs. Open Pollinated seeds

Saving seeds Hybrid Careful pollination between two distinct parent plants Don t know what you re going to end up with genetically, they re not true-totype Most common kind of seed in commerce

Saving seeds Open Pollinated Are either self-pollinated or cross-pollinated To maintain good genetics, parent plants need to be isolated from other plants within the family (corn and cucurbits are especially good at mixing) Usually grow true-to-type Heirloom varieties are examples of open pollinated plants

Saving seeds For most vegetables: 1. Harvest seeds when fruit is fully ripe, but before it goes rotten.

Saving seeds For most vegetables: 2. Separate seeds from surrounding fruit tissue and allow to air dry.

Saving seeds For most vegetables: 3. Keep out of direct sunlight in a wellventilated area with low humidity

Saving seeds Tomatoes Among the easiest to collect and save Squeeze seeds onto screen or wax paper to dry Soaking fresh harvested seeds for 2-3 days before drying

Saving seeds Pepper Also extremely easy Select when peppers are changing from green to another color Place seeds on wax paper or screen until dry Some out-crossing may occur

Saving seeds Eggplant, tomatillos Separate seeds from fruit and allow to dry

Saving seeds Beans and legumes Allow bean to dry on mother plant until you can hear seeds rattling around in pod Pick pods and continue drying When completely dry, separate seeds from pods and freeze 24 hours before putting in storage

Saving seeds Sweet Corn Hard to collect Cover ear with paper bag BEFORE silks emerge Once silks are out, take tassel from same plant and shake on silks. Replace bag Let kernels dry completely on cob

Saving seeds Cucurbits (melons, squash, pumpkins, cucumbers) Readily cross-pollinate with each other Select a male and female flower that are about to open Prevent female flower from opening or put it in paper bag When male flower opens, remove the blossom and anthers Touch male anthers to center of female flower Close or cover female flower again Mark resulting fruit and let it grow very ripe before harvesting. Scoop out seeds

Saving seeds Biennial Vegetables Need to grow for two years before seeds are produced Many intercross Depending on species, may need to be harvested, brought in for the winter, and replanted following spring May need to net them to exclude flies and bees

Saving seeds Seed Storage Keep in a cool, dry location

Saving seeds Seed germination test Moisten two or three layers of paper towels Make a row of seeds and roll them into the towel Place in zip lock bag in a warm place (between 70-80 F) Compare the number of germinated seeds to those that didn t germinate to determine if they re worth planting.