HOW DOES YOUR GARDEN GROW

Dear Fellow Gardeners and Future Gardeners,

Thank you, Lord, thank you for the refreshing rains, and the cool air is an extra blessing. I love the cool fall months but it is always hard to say 'goodbye' to my garden. Hopefully, we will have the energy to finish preparing our beds for the coming winter. If you haven't mulched your perennials yet- put a 2-3inch layer on them, being careful not to get it around the crown of the plant.

Rule of thumb: Leave a 3- inch gap around the stem of your plants and shrubs and when mulching around trees, pull the mulch 6 inches away from the trunk of the tree. Mulch is very beneficial in protecting the root system, but if you mulch too close to the main stem of the tree, it can rot the tree or cause fungal infections. THe same applies to the shrubs and flowers.

I am new at collecting seeds, and I cannot speak from experience so I have consulted with the experts on this subject to help us begin to be collectors. Collecting seeds is not only thrifty, but it is a satisfying endeavor. For fun: Have you ever placed orange seeds in water for 24 to 48 hours and then planted them? Children love this! Try this for your young ones next spring. It takes several days in full sun, then behold you see a green sprout shooting up and you have the beginnings of an orange tree. This also teaches the children patience because they want it to happen the next day. Favorite seeds to collect: old-fashioned petunias, cloeme, Queen Anne's Lace, bachelor buttons, zinnias, blanket flower and coreopsis. To collect seeds, let the flowers mature and form seed pods. Then on a dry day, collect seeds by shaking the plant on to a piece of paper. Make sure your seeds are thoroughly dry, then store them in labeled, airtight plastic bags or mason jars. Once sealed, store them indoors in a cool, dry place until ready to plant in the spring.

Tips:

1. Move houseplants back inside. Wash the leaves with diluted soap and water. This helps the plants breathe better. Eliminate any pests with insecticidal soap.

2. Leave perennial foliage standing through the winter, cut back in very early spring. Get rid of dead foliage if you had trouble with fungus and disease during the growing season. Always wait to cut back perennials until your garden has had a hard freeze. Then check the plant by scratching the surface of the stem. If there is no green, then it is safe to cut back 2 or 3 inches from the ground. 3. Fall is the best time to divide

most spring and summer blooming perennials. This should be done 6 weeks before the first hard freeze. Since it is so difficult to predict the weather in Texas, use your own common sense as to when is the best time. Here are a few plants that love to be divided: Hostas, Phlox, Peonies, daylillies, Blackeyed Susan, Astilbe.

THIS TIP IS FOR MEN:

Fill a bucket with dry sand. Pour about a half gallon of vegetable oil evenly over the top. Let soil sift through sand, then push your garden tools in. The coarseness of the sand serves like sandpaper and keeps debris off the tools. The oil keeps sand from damaging the metal. An easy way to take care of larger tools is to spray vegetable oil from a can on them. Drain and store water hoses, and insulate to water taps. Remove gasoline from your mowers and change your oil. You will be ready for next spring and your wife will be so proud of you.

Dates to remember: Oct. 26 and 27 from 10 a.m. TO 5 p.m. at East Texas Lumber. Come pick up your bulbs for planting on November 4 at 9 a.m. 'til ...

Now go and enjoy the Fall and the coming water,

The Happy Gardener

I cannot endure to waste anything as precious as Autumn sunshine by staying in the house. So I spend all the daylight hours in open air. Nathaniel Hawthorne