COMPOSTING

GENERAL UPKEEP

• Collect soil samples for testing.  Test your lawn, flowerbeds & vegetable garden.  Testing should be done every 2-3 years.  The kits and analysis are FREE.  Strong healthy plants start with proper soil pH and fertility.
• Throw away any diseased plant material.  Do not put it in a compost pile.  Leaving infected plant material on the plants or on the ground provides a source of inoculum for next years infection.

LAWN CARE

• Pamper newly seeded fescue lawns. Little grass plants have very small, shallow roots.  Keep them watered.  Don't let falling leaves smother them.  Use a leaf blower on low power or rake very gently so you don't uproot the tender young plants.
• If desired, Bermuda lawns may be overseeded with annual rye at a rate of 5 lbs/1000 sq ft.

TREES, SHRUBS & ORNAMENTALS

• Improve your clay soil.  Shrubs and perennials can drown and suffocate in sticky clay soils.  Loosening the soil and adding well-rotted compost, in a ratio of one part compost to two parts soil, allows plants to grow much better.  Mix it well with the soil, making a bed 8-12" deep. 
• Use shredded leaves as mulch.  Fallen leaves contain lots of nutrients, but they decompose slowly.  Help the process along by grinding up your leaves rather than sending them to the dump.  Don't have a shredder?  Rake the leaves into rows and run over them with a mower, preferably one with a bagger attachment.
• Plan for planting.  Buying on impulse can be costly and labor-intensive in the future.  Before hitting the stores, determine "What does this particular site need?"  Select plants that will do well in the available site conditions.  Consider the mature size of the plant, also.
• Purchase spring-flowering bulbs and store them in a cool place until chilly weather sets in and you can plant them. Daffodils , Spanish Bluebells (Hyacinthoides hispanicus), and Snowflakes (Leucojum aestivum) are bulbs to consider. By contrast, Tulips and Dutch hyacinths decline after their first season in Johnston County, and are best treated as annuals.
• Compost your yard waste! As you cut back perennials in preparation for winter, think about returning that bounty to your garden in the form of compost. Compost is nature's favorite fertilizer and soil conditioner.  Recycle grass clippings, leaves, and non-diseased garden refuse.  E.mail me for a copy of a publication on how to create compost.
• Wait to prune trees and shrubs.  Pruning before dormancy may induce tender, new growth that will not have time to harden off before the first frost. 
• Take cuttings of begonias, coleus, geraniums and impatiens to root and grow indoors during winter. 
• Remove bagworms from evergreens to greatly minimize their population numbers for next year.  The eggs for next years caterpillars are in the bag.
• Trigger roses into dormancy by no longer deadheading spent flowers and allow rose hips to form.
• Avoid cool season weeds by applying the appropriate pre-emergent herbicide to plant beds and turf areas that had cool season weeds last year. 
• Coddle Holiday Cactus  - Leave your holiday cactus outdoors in a spot that gets a few hours of bright sun and no light after dark. Give it regular water and fertilizer. The combination of attentive care, bright daytime, and long, dark nights sets the stage for heavy flower bud production in early winter.

VEGETABLES & FRUITS

• Plant a cover crop in your vegetable garden. Legumes, such as clover and alfalfa, will enrich the soil by fixing nitrogen. Cover crops prevent erosion and can be turned over to decompose in the soil and provide needed organic matter.
• Consider planting a fruit tree.  The ideal time to plant is December.  We will be starting our tree fruit and nut sale in October in preparation for delivery and planting in December.
• Good sanitation is important for disease and insect control.  Thoroughly clean up fallen leaves and fruit.  Don’t forget fruit left hanging on trees.
• Dig sweet potatoes  before frost.
• Keep pecans picked up.  Weevil larva for next year’s populations will crawl out of the nuts and overwinter in the soil if the nuts are not picked up. 
• Build a cold frame to plant cool-weather vegetables for harvest into early winter.  For further details visit http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/johnston/homehort2/howto.html#COLD_FRAME
• If you are concerned that nematodes may be causing problems, NCDA offers a test for only $3.00 to check for nematodes.  The forms, boxes and bags are available at the Cooperative Extension office.

HOUSEPLANTS

• Store tender tubers - such as dahlia, caladium, gladiolus, geranium, and tuberous begonia - which may not overwinter in the garden.  Lift roots, tubers, or corms about the time of our first killing frost, just after their foliage dries.  Dig deep enough so that the roots will not be snapped apart when lifted from the soil. Leave soil around dahlia tubers, canna, and caladium roots. 
• Store tubers in a dry, cool, frost-free place such as a basement. Do not store on back porch or in garage; these plants cannot withstand freezing. Also, store them where rodents will not eat them.
• Geraniums can be overwintered in pots, or bare root in paper bags. Store in a garage or other building until soil dries and falls away from plant parts. Shake soil off roots and tubers, and cut away dried stem. Discard any plant parts that show soft spots or disease. Place tubers and roots in old sawdust or peatmoss, in a flat box or plastic bag with holes for ventilation.
• Check your houseplants for insects before bringing them indoors.  A few insects on plants outside can easily turn into a problem inside.   Giving plants a bath with mild soap often does a good clean up job.