AUTUMN HAS ARRIVED! If you're wondering when to transplant plants, here is some information.
Wow, how to begin, when I am gushing over with excitement for this time of year?!
While summer is all about groundskeeping and lawn maintenance (and trying to stay cool while maintaining a yard!), autumn is all about CREATING!
Yes, I know, it’s when things are seemingly ‘dying’; to me they are merely “going to sleep”. And, while they are slipping into this dormant state, I can slip my shovel up under their roots and MOVE THEM!
Why would I want to move my plants?
Well, I would not necessarily move all of them, just the ones that didn’t seem ‘happy’ where they were….the ones that didn’t bloom as nicely, grow as large as I’d hoped, or perhaps even looked pretty pitiful! Yes, now is the time I will move them. If they got to be a big clump of stems, branches , and roots, then I will divide them, and have EVEN MORE OF THEM for all the wonderful new beds I will be creating and enhancing!
And, if I have green thumb friends, I will make their day by sharing some of these divisions with them!
I can’t wait to prepare a new ‘room’; that is, an area partially enclosed by plantings to create a ‘quiet place’ filled with my favorite plants…I can’t wait to push my shovel into the dark, rich earth and turn that first bunch of dirt that begins my new planting. I will give my transplants a great start by adding a bit of mushroom compost~I never plant anything without it!
A good loosening of the roots, and into the ground it goes~I will soak the new planting, and continue to make sure it is moist, but not soggy. The fall rains will do the rest.
By wintertime, I’ll be back to maintenance, although it will be sporadic; more about that at another time!
Ahhhh, Autumn! A time to create, a time to divide, a time to plant…..and in the cool, crisp, sunny weather~what more can a gardener ask for?
Happy autumn gardening!
-By Betty bee (Ashley's Mom :)
Stay Tuned for More Gardening Tips from Betty!
