The Best of Horticultural Tips for October
The average Fall freeze date is October 10 for Eastern Nebraska.
Garden
1. Plant bulbs from now until the ground is frozen
A. Always buy the biggest bulbs available
B. Plant bulb with pointed end up. Can’t tell? Then lay on side.
C. The word bulb is often used to describe a plant even when it technically grows
from a corm or tuber.
D. If the ground freezes before you get to planting the bulbs, store them in the
refrigerator, but not if you keep potatoes or apples there. Plant in spring.
2. Bulbs can be planted anytime in the fall as long as the ground is workable.
A. Add slow release fertilizer to the soil at planting time to promote strong roots and
early growth.
B. Bulbs present best when planted in drifts or massed together.
3. Cut back peonies with powdery mildew now. Put clippings in trash—not the compost
4. Fall is an ideal time to divide and transplant perennials.
5. “Cracking” refers to the first peak of color the mum buds start showing right before
they open up.
6. Update the garden journal for successes and failures while fresh in your mind.
7. Cocoa hulls make a good mulch for color. However, it is toxic to dogs.
8. Hellebores have a tendency to produce large crops of babies, making them a favorite
pass – along plant.
9. Keep a list of all the plants you have purchased. This is useful for keeping track of
plants that thrive or die in your yard
10. Reduce or stop fertilization of houseplants over the winter months. The exception is
orchids, which still need to be fertilized weakly, weekly.
11. To prepare for next spring, till garden soil to help control insects and diseases.
12. Clean up and dispose of any diseased leaves such as leaf miners on columbines,
black spot on roses etc.
13. Buy fertilizer with low nitrogen now to be ready to spread lightly on daffodils just as
the shoots emerge in early spring.
Lawn
1. Sod can be planted as long as it can be cut.
2. October is a bit late for grass seed. It may not get established before the first hard
freeze.
3. After the first frost, spray creeping Charlie (ground ivy) with triclopyr, which is often
part of a three-way mix.
4. Now is a good time to spray violets in turf as the sugars are now moving down in the
plant for winter storage. Same is true for bindweed. Spray with a three-way mix
herbicide.
5. If you find slime mold on turf after the cooler, wet weather, just wash it off. No other
treatment is needed.
6. For most effective broadleaf weed control in lawns, do not mow the lawn two to three
days before treatment and after treatment. Allow three to four days to pass before
mowing.
7. It is a good idea to apply a combination of slow/quick release nitrogen fertilizer in
both September and October.
8. Water new sod two to three times a day.
9. Quack grass spreads fast. Round-up is the best control.
10. Fall fertilization--50% fast release Nitrogen and 50% slow release Nitrogen.
11. Apply broadleaf weed control by mid to late October.
12. If you did not aerate in September, core aerate now to break down thatch, clay, and
to allow air to enter the soil.
Trees
1. While bagworms are easy to see now, feeding has stopped and insecticides will not
work. Pull bagworms off that you can reach and toss in trash.
2. Uniform and sudden dropping of interior needles on evergreens is natural at this time
of year. Do not be alarmed.
3. Some trees are starting to change colors in our area. Remember to deep-water
trees with a hose during dry periods through October and November. This is
especially important if the winter turns out to be dry.
4. Trees attacked by apple scab will drop early. Be ready next spring to apply fungicide
at green tip, in 7-10 day intervals.
5. Remove tree stakes if in place longer than one year.
6. Wrap the bases of young trees to prevent sun scald and protect from critters, or use
wire screens to keep animals from eating over winter. Make sure the barrier is at
least two feet high or as high as you think the snow might drift.
The average Fall freeze date is October 10 for Eastern Nebraska.
Garden
1. Plant bulbs from now until the ground is frozen
A. Always buy the biggest bulbs available
B. Plant bulb with pointed end up. Can’t tell? Then lay on side.
C. The word bulb is often used to describe a plant even when it technically grows
from a corm or tuber.
D. If the ground freezes before you get to planting the bulbs, store them in the
refrigerator, but not if you keep potatoes or apples there. Plant in spring.
2. Bulbs can be planted anytime in the fall as long as the ground is workable.
A. Add slow release fertilizer to the soil at planting time to promote strong roots and
early growth.
B. Bulbs present best when planted in drifts or massed together.
3. Cut back peonies with powdery mildew now. Put clippings in trash—not the compost
4. Fall is an ideal time to divide and transplant perennials.
5. “Cracking” refers to the first peak of color the mum buds start showing right before
they open up.
6. Update the garden journal for successes and failures while fresh in your mind.
7. Cocoa hulls make a good mulch for color. However, it is toxic to dogs.
8. Hellebores have a tendency to produce large crops of babies, making them a favorite
pass – along plant.
9. Keep a list of all the plants you have purchased. This is useful for keeping track of
plants that thrive or die in your yard
10. Reduce or stop fertilization of houseplants over the winter months. The exception is
orchids, which still need to be fertilized weakly, weekly.
11. To prepare for next spring, till garden soil to help control insects and diseases.
12. Clean up and dispose of any diseased leaves such as leaf miners on columbines,
black spot on roses etc.
13. Buy fertilizer with low nitrogen now to be ready to spread lightly on daffodils just as
the shoots emerge in early spring.
Lawn
1. Sod can be planted as long as it can be cut.
2. October is a bit late for grass seed. It may not get established before the first hard
freeze.
3. After the first frost, spray creeping Charlie (ground ivy) with triclopyr, which is often
part of a three-way mix.
4. Now is a good time to spray violets in turf as the sugars are now moving down in the
plant for winter storage. Same is true for bindweed. Spray with a three-way mix
herbicide.
5. If you find slime mold on turf after the cooler, wet weather, just wash it off. No other
treatment is needed.
6. For most effective broadleaf weed control in lawns, do not mow the lawn two to three
days before treatment and after treatment. Allow three to four days to pass before
mowing.
7. It is a good idea to apply a combination of slow/quick release nitrogen fertilizer in
both September and October.
8. Water new sod two to three times a day.
9. Quack grass spreads fast. Round-up is the best control.
10. Fall fertilization--50% fast release Nitrogen and 50% slow release Nitrogen.
11. Apply broadleaf weed control by mid to late October.
12. If you did not aerate in September, core aerate now to break down thatch, clay, and
to allow air to enter the soil.
Trees
1. While bagworms are easy to see now, feeding has stopped and insecticides will not
work. Pull bagworms off that you can reach and toss in trash.
2. Uniform and sudden dropping of interior needles on evergreens is natural at this time
of year. Do not be alarmed.
3. Some trees are starting to change colors in our area. Remember to deep-water
trees with a hose during dry periods through October and November. This is
especially important if the winter turns out to be dry.
4. Trees attacked by apple scab will drop early. Be ready next spring to apply fungicide
at green tip, in 7-10 day intervals.
5. Remove tree stakes if in place longer than one year.
6. Wrap the bases of young trees to prevent sun scald and protect from critters, or use
wire screens to keep animals from eating over winter. Make sure the barrier is at
least two feet high or as high as you think the snow might drift.