8 Garden Maintenance Tasks To Complete This Fall Before Winter Weather Arrives

19.09.2024 - 03:15 / southernliving.com / Ashlyn Needham

Unless you're planting flower or vegetables that grow in the winter, you shouldn't expect much out of your garden when the cold weather arrives. But, that doesn't mean there aren't a few tasks to complete at the end of summer that helps keep your garden in excellent condition for the following spring.

Believe it or not, your green-thumb work isn't over once you've reaped what you sowed, literally. Once the summer season starts to transition into fall, there are several garden maintenance tasks you need to complete so your soil survives the brutal winter temperatures.

Curious to know what you should do? We spoke to two gardening experts for their advice on the top garden maintenance tasks to complete at the end of the season.

• David McCary is the owner of Seattle Sustainable Landscapes.
• Judy Mitchell is a gardening experts at Mitchell's Nursery in King, NC.

It should go without saying that taking care of weeds was going to be at the top of the list. Ideally, you should monitor weed sprouts at the beginning of spring, but fall time is the next best season to remove the pesky sprouts before your garden goes dormant during the winter. «It is crucial to get rid of weeds that may have sprouted so that they will not reseed and spread over the winter or be ready to sprout for warm season weeds,» Mitchell says.

Both of our experts say harvesting is a major part of garden prep for the winter. According to Mitchell, you should aim to pick vegetables daily or every other day to keep the plant producing, while McCrary says this is the perfect time to harvest seeds from spent flower heads.

Regardless if you've invested in a handy sprinkler or irrigation system, or