How do you prepare garden for next season?

It's getting pretty chilly now here in Il. and because I've never had a garden before I really don't know the first step to preparing it for winter and next season. My tomatoes are still growing and flowers too, do I have to wait until everything dies off and then what do I do? I appreciate all your help! Thanks, Denise

You can start the clean up now so it is not so overwhelming later. Go ahead and start pulling out, cutting off dead leaves and branches. Critters and diseases can hide in them for the winter. It is also a good time to go ahead and add a bit of soil if you didn't do it in the springand get your spring bulbs planted. Around November or so, you can start winter sowing those seeds that need a cold period. I am sure others have other ideas but this is pretty much what I am doing. Don't forget to dig up and drag in all those canna, glads, elephant ears, dahlias, caladiums, etc that you want to store for the winter.

Well...I'm in the same boat as you Tomden, but this is what I plan on doing. When the grass dies off, thats when I'm getting the tractor here and push out the grass (where my garden will be (or gardens lol) then we will till the ground under and sift through it. I have great soil here, as they used to farm this land so I dont think I'll have to add much to it. Then in the spring I'll be ready for it and I CANT WAIT!!! LOL

I move potted plants to the protection of the covered patio, drain the garden hose and put away my tools. Then wait for spring to do any real work.

Pack the van and get out the pepper killer spray!

Speaking of potted plants..... what should I do with my terracotta strawberry pot? Can I leave the strawberry plants in it and put it in my unheated garage? What about all my potted hostas? Yikes!!! So much to do, so much to do!!!!

After the first hard frost, I cut most of the gardens down to about 18 inches tall. I remove the dead anuuals like Btchelor Buttons, zinnias & snapdragons. I dig & dry the cannas. I'm in the process of adding mulch right now to protect my gardens during the winter. Leaving some of the garden intact also breaks the wind blowing thru here. I will throw lawnmower grass & leaves onto the plants that need a lighter protection.

I always leave the purple coneflower and black eyed susan seed heads on the plant. The finches will eat them in the winter when they can't find many other seeds. Ornamental grasses can be left also. Then in March cut down to about 3 inches. Do not leave terra cotta pots where they can freeze unless they are empty. They will crack. Same is true for most concrete garden ornaments and bird baths. Trust me. I've learned the hard way.

I've started two small beds and have a third planned. Put down dampened newspaper over the grass, covered with layers of top soil, peat, compost and put up the brick border. I've put bulbs in the 2 small beds and will add perennials in the spring. The 3rd larger sideyard bed will await planting in the spring with shade plants. I've also put up a new trellis and planted two new clematis that I bought from Chalk Hill Clematis (gosh they were great to deal with). This has all been done in the last 2 weeks. I've got somewhere in the neighborhood of 325 bulbs to plant still. I've also got 1 or 2 tender perennials that aren't hardy in my zone to dig and pot and a couple of cuttings I want to take to try and overwinter for spring planting. Sometimes this seems like a busier time of year than spring!!!

i have a pot of chick and hen can they stay out or should i bring them in? I have some in the ground that come back every year but put some in one of those nifty pots with the holes in the sides and i am not sure what to do with them...

Another reason I don't cut my my coneflowers and black-eyed susans down is that I actually like the looks of having some dead stuff (though not a lot!) sticking up over the winter..I like that plants don't have to be "alive and blooming" to be enjoyed. Plus, when I see the flower heads sticking up over the snow in the dead of winter it reminds me that spring WILL come again...it's a promise of life to come.

I plan to pull out the annuals, cut down the periennials, work shredded leaves and organic cow manure into the soil and wait for spring.

BIRD

I pile on lots of compost and get ready to plant the "winter" garden. Here in Los Angeles fall is our most active planting season!

I pray for lots of snow to insulate it over winter! and i leave everything as it is till spring. It makes for a very pretty winter garden!

Fall clean up for me is getting all the garden decorations put away!

A garden friend of mine whose business is selling flowers told me that he cleans up and prepares the soil in the fall to make it easier to do spring planting. That's what I am hoping to do when I get off the computer.

BIRD

Oh Thanks to you all at least I now have an idea what to do to get started. Denise

I second that tomden :-) Thanks to all for giving me great ideas of how to start and prepare for my spring garden :-) thanks all!!!

How I get my garden ready for winter...
I go to all the "big" neighborhoods, the ones that have professional landscapers and snag about 15 bags of leaves. Then I bother all my neighbors for there last grass clippings of the summer. (none of my neighbors spray chems on there lawn)Clear out the compost pile thats be cooking all summer. Then I dump it all on my cleared out garden run the mower over it and wait till spring to dig it under. Then I go organize seeds and dream of next season.

Oh yeah I also clean and put out all the bird feeders.

Willowsrain

Hey thats a good idea willowsrain! lol Cant you put the leaves you gather from this fall and till them under now?

We get several truckloads of leaves from a nearby town each fall/winter and compost them or just leave them as is in the bags until I need them in a couple years or so. If they have already been shredded I will use them immediately(if they are on top of the pile)to amend soil and mulch plants.
This year I hope to get a big dump truck load of shredded stable cleanings from the state fair grounds about 15 miles from us. That will make great mulch and compost.

All this advice is sssssoooo APPRECIATED, I wouldn't know what to do without you guys, THANKS A BUNCH AND BUSHELS!!! LOL Seriously, Denise

Ok, Im calling City Hall lol...this lil' town is having a "Oliver & Hardy" Festival this weekend, surely they will let me have the hay lol...hehehe thanks for all the advice!!!!!

Julieanne aka ABG

Annabellegabby, if you are lucky the "hay" will be straw bales, no weeds. That's what is usually used for decorations for events like that. Straw is the stems from crops like wheat where the seed head is used for human or animal food, the stems are cut down and baled like hay but it is bright yellow. Straw bales are lighter and easier to handle than hay bales. It is also used for animal bedding in stalls, not for feed since it has almost no nutritional value.