Fall in the garden
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Summer has taken most of the beautiful blooms with it and now it's time to enjoy the few autumn blooming flowers and colorful leaves. And it is time to get the garden ready for winter. It is hard to believe we need to water after one of the wettest summers I can remember but making sure plants have adequate water before the ground freezes can help ensure survival of your perennials and trees. Most require an inch of water per week. If plants and trees don't have enough reserve water in the ground for the roots to draw up and replace water lost from harsh winter weather (think evergreen needles and rhododendron leaves), then death of plant tissue occurs. Newly planted trees and shrubs will benefit as well by reducing stress from winter weather.
A smart soil practice is to cover up your vegetable gardens to help conserve topsoil, add organic material to improve soil condition and provide additional insulation for perennial plants such as asparagus and strawberries. Use at least a 3-inch layer of mulched leaves, straw or compost over your vegetable garden. Consider leaving some portion of your soil alone, which means don't till or use mulch. Many species of native bees overwinter in the ground, and cultivating or using mulch interferes with this process. Once the ground freezes, apply a 6-inch layer of mulched leaves, compost or bark mulch to perennials to provide extra insulation during winter.
I f your perennial plant material is healthy, allow it to die back naturally. Don't feel the need to tidy up the garden until spring allowing the flower seed heads to nourish the birds who stay for winter and give homes to the insects who sleep in stems or under leaves. You are providing valuable habitat for many of our native pollinators. They will use these structures to overwinter, perhaps having already laid their larvae within the stems. Structures from grasses and other hollow-stemmed perennials are especially valuable. If your plants are not healthy or have insect infestation remove them to prevent disease progression.
All summer the mower mulches grass back into the lawn and as the leaves begin to fall, a good practice is to mulch and collect the leaves to go on the raised vegetable beds, and around the shrubs and perennials. It is important to note that not grinding the leaves before putting on garden beds can smother your perennials, make homes for mice and voles who will thrive in that environment and may cause plant, tree and shrub damage. On the other hand putting leaves you haven't mulch on an area you want to smother weeds and grass will work well. MSU has information on it's Smart Gardening site if you want more information.
Lifting tender bulbs, corms and tubers is another part of fall garden care. Typically, this is done after the first frost blackens foliage and it dies back but before the frost impacts the soil. The most familiar tubers are dahlias, calla lilies, gladiolus, cannas and begonias. Carefully dig out around the drip line of the plant trying not to damage the tubers. Clean as much dirt off by brushing the soil off. If you use water to wash the tubers make sure they are thoroughly dry before storing or they will be prone to molding. This is a great use for the mesh bags from onions and other fruits and vegetables to store them in a space where they won't freeze. If you have grown your begonias and dahlias in pots, you can store them in a space which doesn't freeze in their pots when the foliage has died back; keep the space in the 40-45-degree range.
Now is also the time to plant your spring flowering bulbs. Bulbs are planted after the first frost but before the soil freezes, digging a hole about 2-3 times as deep as the bulbs is tall. Read the information
about when they bloom, early, mid or late spring; by getting some of each variety you can extend the blooming season. When choosing what bulbs to plant take garden conditions into consideration. If deer are frequent visitors to your garden daffodils, alliums and hyacinths are good choices; deer won't touch them. Tulips on the other hand are addictive to deer. If you want your daffodils and tulips to naturalize, make sure you are buying bulbs that specify good for naturalizing. Typically, hybrid tulips will bloom for 1-2 years and then all you get is greenery, look for the catalogue to tell you they are perennial. Snow drops are the earliest of the spring bulbs to bloom, they are deer resistant also. Crocuses are true perennials but while deer will pass them up rabbits, squirrels and chipmunks will either chew them or dig up the bulbs.
Some unusual bulbs to consider include camassia which is native to North America. They will thrive in that spot in your garden that is wet in the Spring but dries up in summer. There is also foxtail lily which can be quite tall (3-4 feet and up). These are back of the garden bulbs and thrive in the hot spot in your garden where nothing else tolerates the heat. Fritillaria come in several varieties including the checkered lily. They are early summer bloomers and will tolerate partial shade. And finally there are many varieties of lilies to consider. Easter lilies grow well in Michigan but don't expect them to bloom in the Spring, they are August bloomers. May varieties of oriental lilies are available, again al mid to late summer bloomers which do well in our area.
If you have specific gardening questions MSU has a Gardening in Michigan portal (https://www.canr.msu.edu/home_gardening/) with many guides for anything gardening. They also have a Lawn & Garden Hotline: Call 1-888-678-3464 (1-888-MSUE4MI) available Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM Eastern time for free gardening advice. You can also Ask Extension: Submit online questions and upload photos 24/7 through the Ask Extension Website for expert answers.