October
- TIME TO PLANT: Fall is the ideal time to plant trees, shrubs, cool season grasses, perennials, and cool season annuals such as pansies and violas.
- PLANT FESCUE SEED:As with other plants, sowing fescue seed in the fall allows the grass to root in and become established before the stressful heat of summer returns.
- APPLY A PRE-EMERGENT: To control winter weeds such as poa annua (annual bluegrass), henbit, chickweed and others, apply a pre-emergent to your Bermuda or Zoysia lawn around mid-month. Do not apply to a fescue lawn if you plan to sow seed in the fall. Not only will it prevent weed seeds from germinating, it will also prevent the grass seed from germinating.
- PLANT PANSIES:Remove your tired summer annuals, prepare the bed, and plant cool season annuals such as pansies, violas,ornamental cabbage and kale, snapdragons, Swiss chard, and mustard.These plants will provide some much needed landscape color throughout the fall and winter months.
- APPLY A WINTERIZER: Winterizers are fertilizers formulated to fortify and help prevent winter injury to warm season turf grasses such as Bermuda or zoysia. Winterizers usually have a high level of potassium in them (the last number on the fertilizer bag).
- BUY SPRING-BLOOMING FLOWER BULBS: Buy tulips, daffodils,crocus and others now while selection is best, but wait until November-December to plant them. Store them in the refrigerator in paper, not plastic bags, until time to plant.