Well, I hope we’re getting the rain that’s predicted for Saturday evening, because we are in the midst of a pretty serious yet “invisible” drought.
Rain has been scarce for weeks, which would have had people watering intensely if they were watching summer gardens wilt and lawns turn brown — but this time of year, the lack of rain is more insidious because it’s so hard to notice.
The “invisible drought” is very real, however, so break out the hose if you planted new trees or shrubs anytime this season, especially in the last month or two. Let the hose drip at the base of each new planting for several hours to really saturate the soil, and repeat this watering once every week we don’t get rain, until the soil freezes hard. The biggest cause of immediate failure for new plantings is lack of water during dry times.
Don’t toss butts or park on leaves, but DO water your lawn
Have you recently gotten a little shock from your car when you touched the door frame to get out? Have you “shocked” a friend indoors just by touching their hand? How about your sinuses and throat — feeling a little dry?
Those are signs of an invisible drought. The air is really dry, and the woods and dry leaves have become a serious fire hazard, so be very careful with smoking materials outdoors. Don’t park your car on top of dry leaves or brush; the catalytic converter, which hangs down low toward the ground, stays hot for a long time.
And don’t be shy about watering plants that are hurting — especially new plantings and, surprisingly, cool-season lawns. Bluegrass and fescue, the predominant lawn grasses in our region, don’t actually go dormant in the fall (that’s why they stay green while zoysia and Bermuda turn tan). Although they don’t need nearly as much water as they would in the summer, they do need some.
The best way to give them a life-sustaining drink is with one long soaking in the morning. A couple of hours once a week should do it in this weather (it would take twice as long in the summer), but don’t water in the evening or for short periods at any time of day.
A well-watered plant is better frost protected
Hopefully, you all have your tender houseplants and such safely back indoors. But what about the semi-hardy plants still growing outside? I personally have lettuces, spinach, alpine strawberries, beets, rosemary, mints and other cool-season plants that are still producing, and I recently realized that they now need water to counter this invisible drought.
A deep, thorough watering once a week in the early morning not only keeps them growing, but actually helps these kinds of plants survive their first couple of frosts. That’s right — well-soaked soil is actually protective for plants facing their first cold fronts. A plant that’s not drought-stressed will be able to tolerate temperatures several degrees lower than similar plants in need of water.
Pruning your plants for holiday greens
Thanksgiving is fast approaching, and many gardeners are eyeing their evergreens and hollies as potential providers of holiday greens. But is it safe to prune plants at this time of year?
Technically, no — the best time to prune most plants is in the dead of winter when they’re fully dormant. (The big exception is spring bloomers, which should only be pruned after they finish flowering in the spring.)
Pruning during a warm fall can cause lush new growth that’s prone to winter injury. But there is a way to cheat here, and as you should have learned in school, “Cheaters always win.”
Keep an eye on your 10-day forecast, and select a day that’s in the middle of a cold stretch — ideally a date with two cold days and nights before and two more following. Then wait until the sun is almost down, and remove entire branches (as opposed to pruning portions of branches).
Don’t do this in the morning; the warm sun will stimulate new growth. Do the work just as the plant is going to bed for the night, and you’ll get your trimmings with no harm to your plants.
Still time to plant spring bulbs — or force them
I planted a lot of spring bulbs in the ground this year, but like many of you, am now staring at a final bag of daffodil bulbs I haven’t had a chance to get to. Luckily, there’s still time to get them in the ground sometime over the next week, and be assured of good blooms in the spring.
But there’s another way to use them if you’re out of planting space outside and have a beer fridge or cold basement. Fill good-sized plastic pots about halfway with high-quality bagged potting soil. (Try to find one that doesn’t contain chemical fertilizer or those awful “water holding crystals,” and whatever you do, don’t use bad garden soil.)
Plant the bulbs close together in the pots, cover them with more potting soil, water them to saturation, label the current date on the pots and then place them in a spot that will stay around 40 degrees, such as in a cold basement or an extra fridge that contains no fruit.
Take the pots outside in 16 weeks, place them in a sunny spot, water them well and enjoy your “forced” flowers!
