YOU WONT BELIEVE: 2 - What They Never Told You

How to Divide Daylilies Before the Ground Gets Too Cold

Daylilies have a way of quietly taking over a flower bed. A plant that once produced an attractive mound of foliage can eventually become a dense clump with fewer flowers in the center, signaling that it may be time for some attention. Dividing an established plant rejuvenates the planting while…

Frugal Gardening · Oct 5

The Best Cover Crops to Sow Before Winter Arrives

Once the tomatoes, peppers, and squash come out, an empty vegetable bed can look like it’s finished working until spring. In reality, bare soil can lose nutrients, erode during heavy rain and give winter weeds plenty of open territory, while planting winter cover crops can keep that same soil protected…

Frugal Gardening · Oct 4

Fall Soil Testing Steps That Make Spring Planting Easier

Spring garden centers have a way of convincing us that our soil desperately needs another bag of something. Fertilizer, lime, compost, sulfur and specialty amendments can quickly turn a simple vegetable bed into an expensive project, especially when you’re guessing about what the soil actually needs. Fall soil testing replaces…

Frugal Gardening · Oct 4

How to Protect Tender Herbs From Sudden Frost

One chilly night can wipe out months of herb growth surprisingly quickly, especially when a warm fall suddenly turns cold. Basil is particularly vulnerable, but container-grown rosemary and other tender herbs may also need help when temperatures tumble. Fortunately, protecting herbs from frost doesn’t require an expensive greenhouse or a…

Frugal Gardening · Oct 3

Cold-Frame Crops That Can Stretch Your Growing Season

The first frost doesn’t necessarily have to end your vegetable garden, and you don’t need an expensive heated greenhouse to keep harvesting. A simple cold frame—a low, enclosed growing space topped with glass, polycarbonate or another transparent material—captures solar warmth during the day and provides plants with additional protection from…

Frugal Gardening · Oct 3

Why Fall Composting Gives Spring Gardens a Head Start

Fall cleanup can leave gardeners staring at piles of leaves, spent vegetable plants, and other organic material that looks like waste but could actually become next year’s soil amendment. Instead of bagging everything for disposal and buying bags of compost in spring, you can put much of that material to…

Frugal Gardening · Oct 3

The Right Way to Store Garden Tools Before Cold Weather

When the garden starts shutting down for winter, it’s tempting to toss the shovel against the shed wall, drop the pruners on a shelf, and promise yourself you’ll deal with everything in spring. Unfortunately, a few months of moisture, dirt and neglect can turn perfectly usable tools into rusty, dull,…

Frugal Gardening · Oct 3

How to Prepare Raised Beds for Cold-Weather Growing

Your summer tomatoes may be finished, but that doesn’t necessarily mean your raised beds need to sit empty until spring. With the right crops and a few inexpensive adjustments, cold-weather raised beds can keep producing lettuce, spinach, kale, carrots and other hardy vegetables well beyond the traditional gardening season. Raised…

Frugal Gardening · Oct 2

Leaf Mulch Uses That Feed Garden Soil All Winter

Every fall, gardeners fill bags with something they may turn around and pay to replace a few months later. Fallen leaves can become mulch, compost and organic matter, making them one of the most useful free materials your yard produces. Instead of hauling them away, strategic leaf mulch uses can…

Frugal Gardening · Oct 2

October Lawn Care Tasks That Protect Your Grass Before Winter

By October, the lawn mower may be running less often, but putting lawn care completely on hold can create problems that show up next spring. Grass type, climate and local frost dates determine exactly what your yard needs, yet several October lawn care jobs can protect turf through colder weather…

Frugal Gardening · Oct 2