The sunny, pleasant days of early autumn are perfect for getting outside to prepare your garden for the cold weather to come. The following garden care tasks can be done now:

~Clean up dead perennials. However, only cut down perennials if they are brown. If they are green, they are still storing energy in the roots for next year’s growth. (Remember: If it’s brown, cut it down. If it’s green, let it be.)

~Plant any perennials and grasses you have divided, shrubs you are relocating, or bulbs you want to add for spring color.

~Do final shaping of shrubs by hand, since shearing when the weather gets too cold may cause your plants to brown (from ‘winter burn’).

~Contact Hanselman Landscape (or your irrigation system installer) to blow the water out of your irrigation system so that the hoses don’t freeze and burst.

Contributed by Betty Hanselman

Gardener’s wife (& fall fanatic!)