The Online Garden Gossip

1011 North Woodlawn, Kirkwood, MO 63122                         314-965-3070                                 www.sugarcreekgardens.com

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Karen's gardening calendar

Every few weeks we feature timely advice on things you can do in your garden, thanks to Karen Collins, one of Sugar Creek's longtime employees and a master gardener.

Things you can tackle in your garden this month include:

• Evergreens should be watered until ground freezes.  Soils should not be dry when winter arrives. 
• Now is the ideal time to plant trees and shrubs.  Prepare the site by loosening the soil well beyond the drip line of each plant.  Plant trees and shrubs at depth they grew in the nursery and no deeper.  Remove all wires, ropes and non-biodegradable materials from roots before back filling.  Apply a 2 to 3 inch mulch layer, like Back to Nature Cotton Burr Compost, but stay several inches away from the trunk.  Keep soils moist, not wet.
• Remove spent flowers and foliage of perennials after they are damaged by frost.
• Plant tulip bulbs now.
• Mums can be cut back to within several inches of ground once flowering ends.  Apply 2 to 3 inch layer of loose mulch after ground freezes.
• Roses should be winterized after heavy frost.  Place a 6 to 10 inch deep layer of mulch over each plant.  Prune sparingly, just enough to shorten overlong canes.  Do not prune climbers at this time.
• Mulch flower and bulb beds after the ground freezes to prevent plants from frost heaving.
• Rake up and collect fallen leaves.  Shredded leaves can be allowed to slowly decay and used in gardens as wonderful organic compost in the spring.