Does your school have a garden or is your school thinking of adding one?
The DE Master Gardeners are starting a Community Garden News bulletin. In this issue: transitioning the garden for fall.
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For more info on starting a garden at your school, please contact Carrie Murphy.




Fall Is the Time to Transition Your Garden
In the fall people often talk of “putting the garden to bed”. But fall and winter are active and important times in your gardens. A little work will make a big difference in how a garden produces now and in the future, in the health of our ecosystem and in our satisfaction as gardeners and stewards of the earth.
Garden Crops:
  • It's time to remove plants that have stopped producing. If you compost, add these plants to your compost pile or bin. Any plants showing symptoms of pests or diseases, or weeds with seed heads, should be disposed of in a plastic bag in the trash.

  • Plants which are still producing, such as tomatoes, peppers, and beans can be left in the garden until frost. Be sure to harvest the fruit, as well as any tender herbs such as basil, that you might be growing. The first frost in Northern Delaware is usually in mid-October, though the “killing” frost may be several weeks later.

  • Kale, chard, spinach, and arugula may "overwinter" and be harvested until spring. Consider seeding plants like these in a planter before October, and use row covers to provide protection for those in the garden.
Garden Soil:
  • This is a great time to prepare the soil for spring. If you have your own or purchased compost, spread it in the garden.
  • If you haven’t done a soil test in the last 2-3 years this is a good time to take a soil sample to see if you need to add lime, organic matter, or other amendments. Try to minimize tilling or disruption of the soil as it can damage soil structure . Gently rake compost and other amendments into the top soil layer. Info on soil testing can be found at University of Delaware Soil Testing Program
  • Some gardeners like to plant a no-till cover crop (also known as "green manure") in the fall. Commonly used are winter rye, red clover, and oats which add nitrogen to the soil. In the spring these cover crops can be cut down.
ANNUALS/PERENNIALS/TREE LEAVES:
  • Seed heads are a good source of food for over-wintering birds, the plants left standing are shelters from freezing for beneficial insects and pollinators (including bees), and leaves chopped up by the lawn mower or used as protective mulch return nutrients to the soil.  Consider leaving as much as you can in place now, and do the clean up in the spring. An added benefit, you will know where different perennials are growing and more easily identify and move around plants in early spring.
BOTTOM LINE: By staying involved in your garden now, you are helping yourself and your environment. You can continue to harvest vegetables during the fall and have greens through the winter. You can have your soil optimized and ready for spring plantings, by returning nutrients to the ground and letting nature process them. And, you can provide a healthy winter habitat for birds and beneficial insects. Then you can sit back and relax with the satisfaction that you are in balance with nature, while your soil and yard stays busy readying itself for the spring.

Prepared by the Community and School Gardens Subcommittee of the New Castle County Master Gardeners
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