Do you cut your Coreopsis Grandiflora to ground in the fall
mary_max
11 years ago
Featured Answer
Sort by:Oldest
Comments (8)
mistascott
11 years agosunnyborders
11 years agoRelated Discussions
your vote- when to cut back: fall or spring
Comments (22)I am in the "yes" camp in answer to this question -- fall or spring, whatever suits your schedule and thevagaries of weather, time availability, etc. I have usually done late winter (not spring...) cleanup, usually about late February. I personally think it is a matter of personal taste and time availability and weather. Though I am not much of a fan of the "dead brown grass winter garden" (apologies to those out there who love it....), I DO think that the mixed or perennial border can be very lovely in November before the snows hit. So I do want to leave the border standing through that month. If December isn't too cold and I have the time I have cut back then. Most of the time not For me, the best time to cut things back is on that rare day in February when the weather warms up and it might even be sunny. A little taste of spring. Great to work out in the garden. Garden chores almost seem welcome. Main thing to remember I think is that if you have lots of bulbs in your borders, you want to get the cutback completed before they start to emerge. Not good to tromp on new bulb foliage....See MoreDo You Amend Your Beds With Any Goodies in the Fall?
Comments (23)Thanks, weed! The soil seems to be clay here and there but mostly it's a shovel's depth down--just need to feed the microherd! When the weather dries out it's not very moisture retentive. Thanks for your reply, Ken! Can't find large amounts of compost nearby except the mushroom stuff. It has poultry litter and a few other ingredients in it. It happens that a friend was hauling from the seller and he'll be dropping me off another load tonight--10 more yds! I must be living right. This is something I've been wanting to do for years and years. I mentioned I'll be layering the components, not incorporating but thanks for the heads up. I read lots of places that it's the mixing in of the wood chips that robs nitrogen not the layering on top. Controversial, I know. DH has been turning the (hot) chip pile from time to time with his tractor--which he loves to do! It's cooking very well! I've admired pics of your garden! Prairie, sounds like you've got it under control! I have only a small raised veg plot at this time and it will get the treatment, too! I read about the DE on the Container Gardening and I think the Cactus Forums, It helps with porosity/drainage. Prepare to go on a journey if you research it! I believe I got both the corn gluten meal for a pre-emergent for weed seeds and the corn meal for feeding the soil critters in the lawn. It was long ago and I've been storing the bags in large plastic tubs--I'm almost afraid to open one! Hi Sunny! We initially amended when we established the borders about 20 years ago, too. Work got in the way and I now have time. Will you share regarding the seaweed compost? I remember reading about it here years ago on the Soil Forum. I live near the ocean and probably need to get some sort of license to harvest it--not sure about that, must look into it! Your gardens are lovely. Rouge you cwazy wabbit! LOL I got the pelleted alfalfa initially for my lawn at the local feed store--call around for the best price--and never used it. Some of the natural stuff can get whiffy if on top of the ground but apparently improves after rain. It's amazing what people put on their lawns and in their gardens! Livestock feed. Cheap dogfood, soybean meal, feather dust, cottonseed meal, Milorganite to name a few...it's a whole other world, I tell ya. You know I love your garden style! Check out the other garden forums--if you have the time, they're an amazing wealth of information. Woodstea, I hear ya on the synthetics. I just couldn't bring myself to use it so I've done nothing instead for years! Just saying that, for me, it wasn't in the cards. Four 40 pound bags of alfalfa will be dispersed over a large area. Thanks for sharing everyone. Wish we could have a plant swap... After a good cleaning up/weeding fest and a few days of torrential rain, I'll broadcast the alfalfa by hand in the flower beds along with the DE, rock dust and worm castings (if I get some), then I'll put the mushroom compost on top of that with wood chips as icing, settle back wait for the monsoons and hope for the best! We get lots of rain here in the Pacific Northwet... Pitimpinai--I won't be cleaning up the garden till late September/early October, it's in the 80's today and I'm in the shade! I have a friend that starts chopping in August! Got lots of flower beds to attack--takes time! I'm a planner...I also have a smallish window before it rains for 6 months without stopping. Gotta be ready to strike when the notion moves me! I love my Colchicum! Your soil and amendments sound awesome! I want lots of fat worms, too! My composters are from the local Master Gardener's Program. I have three--they don't hold much though. I use kitchen scraps, straw and some clippings and put any finished product on my small veg plot....See MoreDo you cut back your Heuchera in the fall?
Comments (8)This is a first but I am going to disagree with gardengal. In the land of ice and snow hardy plants can certainly be damaged by frost. On May 23rd 2014 we had a very unusual late frost and plants I had in the ground for nearly 20 yrs. were severely affected. Hostas were the hardest hit, some turning to total mush. They did come back from the roots. Freshly planted items could take a harder hit. Edited to add - We in cold zones have an additional consideration, the nasty phenomenon known as frost heave. It can throw plants out of the ground with repeated freeze thaw cycles. This occurs with plantings done in fall as well as spring....See MoreFall leaves, what do you do with yours?
Comments (68)PKponder, fun topic. I am thrilled to read about so many member either composting their leaves, returning them to the woods or donating them to urban compost. Leaf mulch and leaf mold are gold. Before we had a mulching/bag mower, I would rake our many leaves (we're in a clearing in woods) and transfer them to a 10x10 tarp, then drag the tarp to the edge of the property where we had our various leaf and compost piles. Now we have a push-power walking mower that can mulch or bag. I like the way the mower shreds them -- I can get more leaves into the ba attachment. I walk the mower down back, then empty the full bag of choppedhardwood leaves into an ad hoc "leaf corral" -- a 6 ft. Tall haphazard enclosure of cattle fencing that stay upright. By late spring, the leaves have flattened down to about 1/3 the volume. I also mix/layer some of the mulched leaves into the garden/kitsch vegetable waste compost pile. I can use the broken down leaf waste or compost for mulch and or turn it over into my garden soil. The worms appreciate that. Years ago recall (circa 1966) people in suburban areas burning piles of raked leaves. October football games on the radio and the fragrance of slow burning Leaves -- there's a few memory locations for that. Environmentally, not good to burn leaves. Thanks to the organic gardeners, Rodale and mulching enthusiasts, then the environmentally cluey. We also have a large revolving brush pile over our banking. The cottontails, snowshoe hares and opossums relish that. Lots of stone walls, but the chipmunks, deer mice and deer ticks are a bit of a pain in the butt -- too many deer ticks....See Moremistascott
11 years agosunnyborders
11 years agosunnyborders
11 years agomistascott
11 years agosunnyborders
11 years ago
Related Stories
GARDENING GUIDESGreat Design Plant: Coreopsis 'Redshift'
Breaking with its pure-yellow past, 'Redshift' tickseed will change up a bland garden with its hot new color combo
Full StoryGARDENING GUIDES7 Ecofriendly Gardening Ideas That Also Cut Chore Time
Spend less time weeding, less money watering and more moments just sitting back and enjoying your healthy garden
Full StoryFALL GARDENING20 Favorite Flowers for the Fall Landscape
Vivid blooms and striking shapes make these annuals and perennials a delight in autumn gardens
Full StoryFALL GARDENING7 Reasons Not to Clean Up Your Fall Garden
Before you pluck and rake, consider wildlife, the health of your plants and your own right to relax
Full StoryLANDSCAPE DESIGN7 Great Trees for Summer Shade and Fall Color
These landscape-pro faves straddle the seasons beautifully. Could one enhance your own yard?
Full StoryGARDENING GUIDES20 Favorite Flowers for Butterflies and Bouquets
Discover perennials and annuals that do double duty as butterfly magnets and versatile cut flowers
Full StoryGARDENING GUIDESProtect a Precious Resource With a Rain Garden
Promote pure water and a beautiful landscape with a garden design that makes the most of the rain
Full StoryGARDENING FOR BUTTERFLIES3 Ways Native Plants Make Gardening So Much Better
You probably know about the lower maintenance. But native plants' other benefits go far beyond a little less watering and weeding
Full StoryGARDENING GUIDESPut Out the Welcome Mat for Leafcutter Bees in Your Garden
Provide a diversity of flowering plants from spring through fall for these charismatic native bees, and you won’t be disappointed
Full StoryGARDENING GUIDESAttract Hummingbirds and Bees With These Beautiful Summer Flowers
Roll out a welcome mat for pollinators to keep your landscape in balance and thriving
Full Story
mistascott