fall

Tip: Fall prep for winter

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu Pull out annual flower and vegetable plants and compost. Clearing off these dead plants reduces the potential for pests in your garden next year and lessens work next spring. Wait to do any pruning till spring when you see buds swelling....

Fall clean up: Time to remove annual vines

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu Morning glories are a good choice for softening a fence. Vines are a great way to soften fences, and annual vines are particularly fun because you can change them every year. Scarlet runner beans, pole beans, morning glories, and black-...

Fall makes good bugs go bad

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu Lady beetle larvae eat the same foods but look very different than adults. Photo: David Cappaert, Bugwood.org All around us we see how the changing seasons affect our trees, gardens, and the insects that depend on them. Sometimes these...

Does your soil have a high pH? Fall is the best time to amend it.

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu The ideal pH range for growing fruits and vegetables is 6.0 - 7.0 (with the exception of a few specific plants such as blueberries, which thrive in acidic conditions). Outside of this range, nutrients become less available to your plants,...

A grape fall topic: Why we remove grow tubes for the winter

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu A vineyard with grow tubes on newly planted vines. Photo: A. Klodd. To appreciate why it's so important to remove grow tubes in the fall, we first have to understand the original function of grow tubes. Grow tubes are designed to...

Late Season Vegetable Visitor: Fall Armyworm

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu Reports are coming in from across the Midwest and now Minnesota that the region has received a late season influx of Fall Armyworm. This pest only makes it to Minnesota from southern regions when we have just the right conditions and...

Take care of your garden soil this fall

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu As fall sets in, late September is an important time to take care of your garden soil so that it’s healthy and ready for planting next spring. Take stock of your soil One of the best ways to make sure you’re giving your soil what it...

Preparing your vegetable garden for fall

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu Fagiolina del Trasimeno cowpeas saved from my garden this year Fall is an abundant and satisfying season in the garden. Your hard work throughout the season has produced a wide variety of fruits and vegetables. Flowers continue to bloom...

Success of fall lawn seeding depends on rain

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu This lawn has gone dormant due to lack of rain. In a normal year, seeding your lawn in late summer or early fall is widely considered the best time. Weed pressure is somewhat lessened, yet there is still enough rainfall and time to...

Blue gentian: A favorite late fall bloomer for bumble bees

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA EXTENSION - www.extension.umn.edu Blue gentian (Gentiana andrewsii) is sometimes called "closed bottle gentian" because of its unusual flower form. This native of northeastern North America, from the Dakotas to the East Coast and through eastern Canada, requires the...