fall

Putting your garden to bed

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu As the growing season comes to an end, it is helpful to clean your garden before putting it to bed for the winter. A good fall cleanup provides multiple benefits for gardeners – it reduces weed populations and disease, minimizes plant...

Transitioning your high tunnel for fall and winter

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu During our 100 farms project, we learned that a lot of Minnesota high tunnels go unused throughout the fall and winter. Research with high tunnel farmers shows that those who use the "shoulder seasons" are the most profitable, and keeping...

Native grasses for great fall color

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu Here’s a look at some ornamental grasses that are good selections for putting on a show in your garden in the fall. Prairie dropseed, Sporobolus heterolepis The golden yellow fall color of prairie dropseed makes it a standout in a...

As temperatures fall, home-invading insects come knocking

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu Boxelder bugs, both young (red) and old (black) cluster on buildings on warm days. Chilly mornings and shorter days signal to humans an impending winter. Bugs get the same message, and they head out to figure out where they’re going to...

What is the autumnal equinox?

Fall begins slightly after the midpoint of September. The arrival of fall may be met with joy that cooler temperatures and vividly colored leaves will soon be the norm. For others, the arrival of fall is met with some trepidation that shorter days will soon pave the way for less sunlight and the...

Best practices for planting fall cover crops

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu Fall cover crop planting is right around the corner, and this blog post is full of resources to help you with species selection, seeding rate, and seeding methods. Choosing a cover crop The first step to choosing a cover crop for...

When to mulch strawberries this fall

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu The point of spreading straw over strawberries in the fall is to protect them from harsh winter temperatures. Straw does not need to go on this early, but rather growers should make plans now to do it in a couple of weeks. In fact, straw...

Fall yard and garden checklist

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu Warm-weather plants like jasmine should be brought indoors before temperatures fall below 50 degrees. Friends in the northern part of the state may see snowflakes or wintry mix drizzle soon and temperatures are in the 30s and even 20s...

Fresh produce to enjoy this fall

As hot, humid days give way to cool fall temperatures, it is prime time to enjoy a new bounty of fresh vegetables. Homeowners may be ready to pick the vegetables they have been growing the past several months. While many home vegetable gardeners focus on early spring plantings that yield the...

8 sights to see at fall harvest festivals

Just as summertime is synonymous with concerts and carnivals, fall is a prime time for its own opportunities for seasonal entertainment, such as harvest festivals. Certain features overlap between summer carnivals and fall festivals, but the latter offers some unique offerings as well. The...