Enjoy your Water Garden!

You should be able to enjoy your water garden through the fall. Enjoy the last blooms on your water lilies and other plants before they start to die back for the winter.

Leaves on the surrounding trees may start to turn and fall. You should clean them out regularly to prevent build up or clogging your pump intake. Marginal plants can be cut back so the tops are above the surface of the water. 

There are many great water plants that wil still give you colour through the fall. Thes include; the Colocasia with their dark leaves and stems, Cypress ‘Baby Tut’ with their tufts of grass like leaves, Equisetum with their dark tips to the foliage, Fairy Moss with their beads of dew or rain, Orza ‘Black Madrass with their dark leaves, and Thalia with their teardrop shaped leaves.

Tips for Starting a New Lawn

Fall is an ideal time to start a new lawn from seed or to over-seed your existing lawn to fill in the spaces. To over-seed your existing lawn first spread some fresh topsoil. You should mix a Turf Starter fertilizer (15-30-10) with the soil while you spread it. The fertilizer helps to promote development of strong healthy roots.

Make sure that you spread the soil evenly and level it to ensure even growth. Then apply lawn seed and lightly rake the seed into the soil. To ensure that the lawn seed germinates best keep the new lawn moist for at least four to six weeks. You should not fertilize the new lawn until after it has been mowed at least twice.

Watering your Lawn

During the fall the west coast generally receives enough rain to provide adequate water for your lawn. In the event of a warm dry fall it may be necessary to continue to water your lawn. Just remember that watering restrictions are in effect from June 1st until September 30th. You can still water your garden by hand but you can only use sprinklers on your lawn during the following times:

• 4 a.m. to 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. only
• Even-numbered address: Wednesdays and Saturdays
• Odd-numbered address: Thursdays and Sundays

Mowing your Lawn

Lawns should be mowed at regular intervals. However, lawns grow more slowly during the fall months. This reduces the frequency with which you have to cut it. For best results your lawn should be cut every 10 to 14 days. A rotary mower should to be set at a height of 2 to 3 inches for the season. Your lawn mower should be kept sharp at all times. A dull mower tears the grass instead of cutting it, making it more susceptible to diseases.

You should use a grass catcher, or rake the cut grass to remove the cuttings and prevent the build-up of dead grass. If you do not remove the dead grass you should power rake your lawn on a regular basis to remove the layer of dead grass (thatch) that builds up, this is called power raking or de-thatching.

Applying Moss Control

Fall is not the best time to apply Moss Control to your lawn. The Moss has gone dormant and has probably already spread the spores that will grow next year. You can rake out the moss by hand or use a rent a power rake to do it more effectively.

Fertilizing your Lawn

Fall is a time when the lawn needs to be given a feeding of fertilizer that has more potash in it. The Evergro Winter Ready (6-3-20) helps to develop a strong healthy lawn for next year. The best time to apply fertilizer to your lawn is when it is raining. If it is not raining when you apply the fertilizer you should set out the srpinkler and water your lawn for a few hours to ensure that the fertilizer is washed into the soil.

Fall is also an ideal time to apply lime to your lawn. Lime is essential to balance the Ph in the soil. In addition Lime helps the grass absorb important nutrients. If you have a significant amount of Moss in your lawn the Lime will also help to deter the moss from growing. However it is best to wait until March or April to apply a moss control to kill the moss. 

Fall is the Time to Plant Your Spring Flowering Bulbs!

You can plant everything from Alliums to Snowdrops in the fall and they will flower from January to June. The best time to plant the spring flowering bulbs is during September and October. Although it is not recommended you can plant your bulbs here on the west coast as late as January and still have them flower the following spring. You can choose from our selection of the following bulbs:

• Allium (Ornamental Onion)
• Anemone (Windflower)
• Camassia (
• Chionodoxa (Glory of the Snow)
• Crocus
• Eranthis (Winter aconite)
• Eremurus (Foxtail Lily)
• Erthyronium (Dog’s-Tooth Violet)
• Fritillaria
• Galanthus (Snowdrop)
• Hyacinth
• Iris
• Leucojum (Summer Snowflake)
• Lily (Asiatic and Oriental)
• Muscari (Grape Hyacinth)
• Oxalis
• Scilla (English Bluebell) 

Plant Fall Flowering Bulbs for Blooms Every Year!

Did you know that there are bulbs that flower in the Fall? There are several varieties of Crocus as well as other bulbs that can be planted in the fall and will flower in the fall. You can plant these bulbs from late August to October and every year they will produce an excellent show of flowers. Varieties that we carry include:

• Crocus Cartwrightianus
• Crocus Sativus (Saffron Crocus)
• Crocus Speciosus
• Crocus Zonatus
• Colchicum Album
• Colchicum The Giant
• Colchicum Waterlily
• Sternbergia Lutea 

 

 

Fall is when trees show their best colours!

Most of the time we take the trees in our garden for granted. We enjoy the shade and the privacy they provide. Fall is when many of those trees show their best colours. The range of red and orange colours seems limitless. If you are looking around your yard and wondering where you can add a bit of colour look up and see if you have space for one of these trees.

Fall Blooming Perennials!

There are many great fall blooming Perennials that you can plant now to add colour to your garden. Favourites flowers include Rudbeckia and Heather while there are many great foliage plants like Ajuga, Euphorbia, Lysimachia, and Heuchera to provide contrast to the flowers. Late summer flowering plants like Pestemon will continue to provide colour into September while many of these perennials will bloom well into October or November.

It is time to start Your Winter Vegetable Garden!

As the summer begins to wind down you should be thinking about growing winter vegetables. There are many vegetable that you can grow during a west coast winter. You can start many of the vegetables from seed like lettuce, carrots, radishes, and many others. You can also buy plants that are already growing like broccoli, cabbage, kale, and swiss chard. You can even plant herbs like Sage and Thyme now for a fall or winter harvest.

Winter Pansies are Ready to Plant!

It is hard to believe that fall is here but even harder to think that it is time to plant your winter pansies. As your summer annuals finish blooming it is time to start replacing them. Pansies make a great filler for winter adding colour to your garden beds, planters, or pots. You can choose individual plants in 4 inch pots or get a better value buying them in a pack of six plants.

Add Fall Colour to Your Garden with Mums!

Mums are a great addition to your garden for fall. They provide colour from August to October. They are a great combination plant with Pansies, Kale, or other fall perennials. They are excellent in the garden or in pots and containers. Mums are sold as annuals but they can be left in the garden to flower again next year, just cut them back in the winter and they will come up again next spring.

Enjoy the Beauty of Summer with Dahlias!

There is nothing more beautiful in the summer than a garden full of Dahlias. These beauties provide months of colour that lasts into the fall. Some varieties bloom right through October. They are easy to grow and require little maintenance. We still have a great selection available for you to choose from. These include:

• Barclay Bush
• David Digweed
• Devon Seattle
• Embrace
• Ferncliff Duo
• Ferncliff Heatwave
• Ferncliff Illusion
• Ferncliff Redeye
• Grapefrost
• Hy Nightfire
• Hy Posh
• Hy Rudy B
• Karma Lagoon
• Lulu Patti
• Mingus Tony
• Preston Park