By Sue Healey – Tillsonburg Horticultural Society

Of all the gardening seasons, Autumn may be my favourite. I love it for its contrasts. Warm days filled with sunshine, mornings of sharp frost and swaths of colour in a rich and diverse palette. October hillsides are still awash in waves of golden rod. Their frothy flower heads break against the scarlet humps of sumac, forming eddies around the pools of purple asters. Along the roadsides native grasses nod their burnished heads in greeting as we pass. The browns are still golden and there is enough green to highlight all of it. October is bold and vibrant and all the more lovely for the frost to come. It’s a good month to be outside and an excellent one for garden work. Moderate temperatures and the eventual autumn rains make this an ideal time for garden projects whether they be renovations, additions or removals. 

While my own garden is full and well established there is always some plant that wants moving or sharing. Most plants prefer division in autumn when cool temperatures and rain make the move easier, for plant and gardener. Spring blooming plants; peonies, iris, rose, and clematis can all be moved now. Most of these have finished flowering and root disturbance won’t jeopardize the display. Late bloomers, think grape leaved anemones, chrysanthemums and sedum, would be better moved in spring. An early spring planting gives them time to reestablish themselves and still produce flowers in the same year. 

This year’s project includes the removal of a decade old peony(Paeonia). Peonies are long lived perennials that rarely need division. When they do, a strong back and a good set of garden forks will make the job easier. Working the forks gently around the clump will eventually pry it out. It’s always harder than I imagine. Those roots cling so desperately that I always have a moment of doubt! But it does let go after a few more rounds. Peony roots are both woody and brittle and are easily broken.Once out of the ground, they can be trimmed and separated intoIndividual crowns, each with 3-5 stalks or growing tips. Divisions should be replanted immediately with no more than 5 cm (2 inches) of soil covering growing tips. Planting any deeper results in foliage and no flowers.  As with all new plantings, water well and regularly until the ground freezes. Peonies may take a year or two to resume flowering after being disturbed but won’t need to be moved again for decades. 

Siberian and Japanese Iris are also on the list this year. Both need frequent division to remain vigorous and promote blooming. Siberian Iris (Iris siberica), with its fleur-de-lis blooms and grass like foliage is tough enough to handle being divided every 3-4 years. Clumps are lifted out whole and cut into manageable wedges using a sharp spade or knife. Japanese Iris (Iris ensata) stands up to the same treatment and will bloom the following spring without missing a beat. Both require rich, moisture retentive soil and full sun to produce years of spectacular blooms. 

Daylilies are among the few perennials that can be moved in either season. Hardy and resilient, daylilies will bounce back within weeks of replanting. Garden forks are the tool here again.I like to work my way around the plant – rocking, poking, pushing. Sometimes cajoling, sometimes swearing. A few rounds and eventually the centre moves, and once it does, you have it. After the clump is out of the ground, two garden forks, inserted back-to-back through the centre of the plant will pry it in two. This can be repeated on each section until you have the sizes you want. Smaller divisions fare better than large. 

Foliage plants such as Hosta, Bergenia and ferns are also best moved or divided in autumn. In early spring, newly emerging leaves are delicate and easily damaged. Whatever damage you do in spring is there all year. Better to divide them at the end of the season when leaves are at the end of their life. Hostas can be uprooted and divided in the same manner as daylilies, if a bit more gently. Treat Bergenia and ferns as you would peonies. Both plants have roots with growing tips that should be shallowly replanted. Rich soil that is consistently moist will result in healthy, vigorous growth.

Of course, there are always extras when you divide a plant. If space or time is at a premium, consider potting up those extra plantlets. Many trees, shrubs and perennials can be overwintered in pots if given the right conditions. A trench dug deep enough to sink the entire pot, backfilled with soil and covered in deep piles of snow will ensure your plants survive the winter. Easier to achieve, but riskier, is lining them against a wall or hedge and covering the pots with leaves to insulate against the cold. Come spring, you will have decisions to make and plants to give. Consider donating extras to the Tillsonburg Horticultural Society’s annual garden auction. The society is an excellent way to give your divisions a new home.

This month’s speaker is Ben Porchuk of Carolinian Canada. Just in time for fall planting, he will be sharing tips on how to use natives in our own gardens and outdoor spaces.

Tuesday, October 1, 2024, Tillsonburg Seniors Centre, 7:30 pm

$20/year $4/meeting

Come as guest, stay as a member.

📷 S Healey 

By Sue Healey

July is upon us and with it, high summer’s long, warm days. Blue skies and warm breezes beckon us away from our regular lives to the beach, ice-cream stand, or hammock. After all the bustle of spring and early summer July can feel almost hushed in comparison. Most of our early work is done and the burst of blooms has given way to a more sedate palette of green. A nap in the shade is one of the finest pleasures in life and in this month, there is time for them. But the garden also beckons and there is always something to be done if you look long enough. Over the years I have learned to appreciate the work of a garden. The benefits are many; physical, emotional, and environmental. Interacting with our natural environment not only moves our bodies, but it also moves our mood – I have rarely come out of the garden worse than when I went in. So, I love July for the chance to take my time at my chores. For quiet moments in amongst the plants. To think of nothing and everything and maybe discover something new. 

The hot, dry weather of July are perfect conditions to addressweeds you might have missed in early spring. A thorough clean up in early to mid July will stop many of the worst annual and perennial weeds from going to seed. As cliché as it may sound,“one years seeding, seven years weeding” is simple truth. Removing unwanted plants before they set seed is half the battle. As a garden matures and plants shade the ground around them there will be less, and less maintenance but some weeds will always find a way in. Regular weeding decreases their numbers and how difficult they are to remove. A good sharp steak knife makes an excellent weeding tool for work in amongst plants. And while you are there you may be lucky (andstill) enough to spot others at their work. I have spied leaf cutter bees slicing half moons out of the red bud leaves and native carpenter bees shaving the fuzz from rose campion stalks. I’vecaught mama rabbits under the peonies and dragonflies at their afternoon slumber. 

The removal of spent flowerheads, also known as deadheading,is chore that really isn’t one. Many spring blooming plants have finished flowering and stalks can now be removed. For those plants that are a bit exuberant in their sprawl (Campanula, Stachys, Muscari) deadheading is an effective way to keep them contained. A decent pair (or two) of secateurs will make quick work of most stalks. Daylilies are the star of July and a joy to deadhead. The gentle and methodical removal of the spent flowers is my favourite way to decompress after the workdayand I look forward to the daily task. Daylilies each have their ways, and some are better than others. My mango daylily is my favourite to deadhead, as satisfying as plucking ripe fruit. I save it for guests if I can. The reds and deep purple varieties like to be groomed in the morning, their faded blossoms leaving your fingers stained with their dye. Others will drop at the slightest touch. You can, of course, leave them to their own devices. The spent flowers will eventually dry and fall on their own and be no worse for wear beyond an occasional dried bloom stuck to a new bud. As with most deadheading, it is a general tidying before the late summer wave of bloom.

Daffodill foliage is still ripening into July and can be unattractive as it yellows and flops. Tucking the leaves among later blooming plants hides them as they mature. Tulip foliage needs time as well but by mid July can be removed with a gentle tug of the stiff brown stem – another satisfying sensation. Allium and any of the early spring flowering bulbs are treated in the same way. If you’re of a mind to divide your bulbs, any time after the leaves have withered is the time to do it. Bulbs can be dried, sorted and replanted immediately or stored in a cool, dry place until planting in early fall.

If the spring has been wet and the growth lush, as it has been this year, early July is the time to thin plants for air circulation. Peonies, tall garden phlox, and Monarda are all prone to powdery mildew. Thin out overcrowded plants by removing a few stalks to increase air movement and mitigate both disease and pests. As the season moves on and the late summer show begins, plants that are past their flowering stage or tattered can be trimmed back to give late bloomers their moment in the spotlight.

That is enough work to warrant a nap. If you can do only one or two chores before you are off, make it weeding or watering, whichever is most necessary. And if you don’t have enough garden work of your own, your local Horticultural Society certainly does. Volunteers are always welcome and celebrated as the great gift they are. THS regular meetings are on summer pause until September, but you can contact them through their web and social media sites.

📷 S Healey