September Fillers

                 The arrival of fall signals bulb plant season and for a more glorious and
                 colorful spring, the more bulbs you plant the better. Many gardeners
                 delegate the whole flower bed and large planters just to bulbs. But while
                 you're waiting for these to bloom, wouldn't it be nice to cover these bulb
                 planting areas with plants that will bloom now and into spring well after the
                 bulb flower has put on its display of colorful flowers. This will provide
                 interest all during winter making it seem like your garden is in continuous
                 bloom season to season.             

                 Bedding plants are those "sure bets" the gardener can count on for fall and
                 winter color, especially when little other color has been planned on from
                 the shrubs, trees or perennials. Among those popular bedding plants are
                 the pansies which give color from the day they are planted either as a riot
                 of mixed colors or massed together in solid shades of blue, yellow, white,
                 red, rose and pink. Another great addition to the flower bed is the fairy
                 primrose which has a dainty flower with delicate foliage.  These flowers
                 provide lots of color through the late fall and winter months. You can
                 choose from white, pink, rose, red or lavender. For a mass of color around
                 the borders and edges, try the viola. Its cheerful flower is available in
                 purple, white, yellow and blue. For a taller flower try some of the
                 snapdragons. They come in heights from 8 inches up to 2 1/2 feet tall.
                 They make excellent cut flowers.      

                 Check your local nursery during the next few months for plants that will
                 brighten your autumnal garden with colorful foliage or flowers. You can get
                 many hours of pleasure out of these colorful garden accents. For starters
                 try the Japanese Barberry. Its leaves turn bright shades of orange and red
                 until winter when its berries linger on leafless branches. Another choice
                 might be the Oregon Grape which is an evergreen shrub that acts like it's
                 about to lose its leaves. In the fall as the weather cools, its foliage colors
                 up in tones of red which are often very vivid. Its new leaves in spring are a
                 bronzy color and in summer yellow flowers appear followed by purple
                 clusters of "grapes".

                 Look for chrysanthemums at your local nursery. They are available for you
                 to plant now. Fill a container by the entry with bronze colored mums or
                 choose a flower bed to fill with any number of vibrantly colored mums.
                 Chrysanthemums are also available in a number of flower forms. You can
                 find quilled, double, spoon, spider, button and others. They range in color
                 from white, yellow, pink, rust, maroon, bronze, cream, lavender and purple.
                 Chrysanthemums are perennial so they come back year after year. Plant
                 in well draining soils with at least six hours of sunlight. Each year the plant
                 will grow in size and reward you with even more blooming beauty.

                 Persimmons are a fabulous sight for many weeks in the autumn. Their
                 foliage will turn yellow, orange or scarlet depending on the variety you have
                 planted. After the leaves fall off, the tree is decked with bright
                 orange-scarlet fruit until late November & December when it ripens.
                 Although the fruit is not as popular as some, it makes great jams, cookies
                 and puddings. Before the fruit is fully ripened it makes a great addition to
                 the holiday centerpieces. The persimmon tree makes an excellent shade
                 tree in a garden but it does need room to grow.     

                 In California there are two major planting seasons--spring and fall. Spring
                 gets plenty of attention but one of the best kept secrets is the beauty of fall
                 planting.  First of all, there is the weather. It's cooler in the fall and that
                 makes it easier to transplant trees, shrubs, bedding plants, and to plant
                 lawns. In the autumn you can count on late fall and early winter rains to
                 take over the watering for you.  Although trees and shrubs are not actively
                 growing above the ground they are very busy sending out strong roots and
                 getting themselves established for the spring and summer.

                 It's easier to prepare the ground for major plantings too. Those early rains
                 open up the ground and make the digging job easier on everyone.  So go
                 ahead and discover the growing possibilities for your garden this fall.  You'll
                 reap the benefits in the spring.

                 Just because the tomatoes are slowing down their production doesn't
                 mean you can't have fresh home grown vegetables in the winter. Prepare
                 the vegetable plot and get ready for winter vegetable gardening. Once the
                 garden is in Mother Nature generally takes over the watering.  You can
                 plant radishes, spinach, lettuce, cabbage, broccoli, carrots, beets and so
                 much more. Check with your local California Certified Nursery
                 Professional™ for suggestions.                              

                 Roses should be encouraged to continue blooming by making sure they
                 get the supplemental food they need. Feeding them becomes the number
                 one item if gardeners want to have cut roses in their home during October,
                 November and maybe even December.  This feeding doesn't guarantee
                 roses for Christmas but without it the possibility will definitely be
                 eliminated.  The last meal for the roses should be in early September, no
                 later than mid-month in most areas.  A later feeding may stimulate too
                 much growth at the time when roses should be slowing down and taking a
                 rest.  Check with your local nursery professional for the best
                 recommendation.