Garden Katha - Tha Fall Saga October 2010

Well-- the dog days of summer are certainly over. But before we could
enjoy the onset of fall and the last of the warm weather, we seem to
have been thrust into early winter. The rain and the cold that you
can’t seem to get out of your bones have all but muted the colors of
the season.  Instead of the vibrant red, orange, and gold that we have
come to expect every October, the garden looks brown and limp.

Take heart!  The garden, despite its raggedy looks, is still very
alive. Much activity is going on clandestinely, “undercover” so to
speak.  The underground life of your garden continues to thrive in the
warmth beneath the topsoil. And this is the season for you to help
prepare for next year by cleaning and planting. Despite the chill in
the air, the ground is still warm and receptive to new additions.

This is the time to start putting in those crocus and tulip and
daffodil bulbs and plant the peonies and rose bushes you picked up on
sale from the garden center. For t’is the season to scour those
end-of-summer garden store sales for the best deals of the year. I
bought my Peonies and the Clematis, not to mention the Sedums, during
the fall.  Being perennials, these go dormant over the winter, only to
come back with new life, bigger, and with more blooms year after year.
This is also the time to nourish your lawn. If you have been toying
with the idea of a lawn re-do, fall is ideal for going ahead full
steam.  Grass seeds, like perennials, will use the dormancy to rest
and recharge to emerge with gusto!

First, get the leaves off the ground and add these to your compost
pile if you have one.  A leaf blower makes the job a breeze. But if
you believe in old-fashioned raking, go for it and give your arms and
back the workout of the weekend!   If you are not into composting,
discard these in large brown paper lawn bags made just for yard waste
and line these up in your driveway - adding architectural interest to
its otherwise tarred plainness. (I don’t know about you but until I
became the proud owner of a sizeable lawn, I was struck by the
enormity and esthetics of such magna cartels of refuse dotting the
suburban driveway)!

Once the ground and the beds are clear of leaves, go ahead and plant.
Put empty pots or wooden sticks down as markers to see where you would
like to see  the blooms.   I usually, plant bulbs in groups of two,
three and five, a few feet apart and in and around the perimeter of my
beds that are of various shapes and size.  It most certainly does not
impart a manicured look. But what the heck!  Nature is not perfect by
any means and I go for the natural as much as possible.  I use organic
fertilizer and compost, adding one or both around all the plants,
particularly the new additions.  This will, to borrow a favorite
terminology of the pharmaceutical companies, fortify the plants for
the long winter haul and the spring efflorescence.
So go ahead and take the plunge.  Think of the flowers you love  and
your favorite colors - colors and shapes you would like to see against
the white of the New England spring snow. Talk to a neighbor or friend
who is into gardening and he or she will be happy to help you pick the
right kind of plants and grass seeds. The sakes people at some of the
nurseries will be happy to answer your questions. Get what takes your
fancy and all that you can plant.  Believe me, a garden full of colors
will do wonders for your spirits after the long and barren winter.  It
will be a while before the first crocuses and snow drops show their
heads but as you plant your spring garden this fall, while the sun
shines till the evening, I will keep my extremities crossed for one
last burst of an Indian Summer.

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Sreemoti Mukherjee Roy resides in Lexington and when she  is not writing columns on gardening she is running her own floral business flowers by Sreemoti.

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