News from Wedel's Nursery, Florist and Garden Center

Where did the summer go?! So many folks have exclaimed, "It can't be September already!" Gardeners don't have to have a calendar to know autumn is nearly here. Shorter days, cooler evenings, crisp air, and clear blue skies are here and welcomed by most gardeners. Working in the garden now is more enjoyable than ever. With the changing of the seasons, we green-thumbers are challenged with a flood of garden and landscape opportunities. Let's take a look at some interesting and important autumn projects.

Farmer's markets are loaded with delicious, juicy fruit this time of year. Who doesn't like red raspberries or blueberries poured generously over a couple of scoops of ice cream or covered with just a little sugar and some cream? How about a hand full of plump grapes or a juicy plum or a crisp, tart apple? Why not plant them in your own backyard? Take a look at your landscape and think about a space where you can work in an apple tree, a cherry tree or a plum. Plant a fall-bearing red raspberry for a special treat this time of year every year. You will add the beauty of spring blossoms plus the benefit of tasty fruit just outside your door. The time to plant fruit is now!

September is the time to prune back your perennials. Be sure to mark the location of each one so you'll remember what you have where. That will make it easier for you to know where to plant your spring blooming bulbs. Wedel's has a variety of plant markers to choose from. We have 10 inch markers with either stainless or copper slip-on tags. Besides being useful, they look nice in your landscaping. We also have platic T markers that suit the purpose too. Be sure to get a label marker pen that has waterproof, long lasting ink made to be used with this style marker.

Give your perennials a good feeding to encourage strong, healthy growth and an abundance of blossoms next year. Three cups of my all organic fertilizer recipe containing mycorrhizae around each perennial supplies all of the necessary and natural major and minor nutrients.

This is the time to transplant perennials. Many perennials will perform better if divided every three to four years. Always remember to condition soil with my recipe mixed with sphagnum peat moss and bone meal into the planting zone before returning plants to the garden. Mix into the planting zone some composted cow manure, sphagnum peat moss, Plant Tone, and bone meal.

Speaking of bulbs, just arriving at Wedel's Garden Center are over 350 varieties of tulips, hyacinths, crocus, daffodils, and a host of specialty bulbs to tantalize every gardener. For green-thumbers, that's some real inspiration! Planting spring flowering Dutch bulbs every autumn is high on the priority list for most gardeners. This fall, let's take on the challenge to plant a sequence of blooms for March through mid-June enjoyment.

Our spring gardens should satisfy all season long. From the early crocuses of late winter through the glory of tulips and alliums, until the abundant blooms of summer arrive to take their turn, the spring garden should be a showplace. And it can be. All it takes is a smart planting strategy this fall. Plant your daffodil and crocus bulbs soon but wait until soil temperatures cool a little (the end of this month or into October) to plant your tulips.

Now is the time to plan your strategy for protecting your valuable landscape plants from damage caused by browsing deer. Often, even with an abundance of other food, it seems that deer prefer a landscape salad. As fall progresses and turns into winter your landscape becomes more and more attractive to them. Protect your valuable landscape plants with Repellex Deer and Rabbit Repellant. One application, when allowed to dry for 24 hours, typically lasts ten to twelve weeks. To protect deciduous trees, shrubs and evergreens during winter, apply to branches this fall, after first frost, early January and to new buds in spring.

In an effort to help our green thumb friends be good stewards of our wonderful earth Wedel's has instituted a recycling program here at the garden center. We are accepting used or obsolete horticulture containers and tags such as trays, flats, inserts, pots etc. that often seem to accumulate in the corner of your garage or shed. You'd rather let them pile up and take up space than throw them in the trash only to take up space in landfills. Maybe you've thought, "Someday there will be a good way to get rid of them without harming our environment." Well, now there is. Bring in your horticultural polystyrene (PS #6), polypropylene (PP #5) and high density polyethylene (HDPE #2) and we will see to it that they are sent to the plastic recycling center. Stop by Wedel's to get all of the details.

Pansies, kale, flowering cabbage and mums are here! Spring bulbs - tulips, crocus, hyacinths, narcissus, allium, muscari, Dutch iris, frittalaria and more will be available by September 14. Make plans to come by soon. There's a lot growing on at Wedel's.