A Landscape Designer’s Fall Walkthrough: Mulching, Editing & Honest Plant Lessons, by Hello Garden on YouTube. 23 min 32 s.
- Video length
- 23 min 32 s
- Time to do it
- 3 hours
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Steps
- 10
What you need
Steps
Walk the garden one quadrant at a time before you spread anything. Note the gaps, the plants that struggled and the spots you want to change.
Clear weeds, fallen leaves and spent annuals off the soil surface. Mulch works on bare soil, not on top of old debris.
Spread 2 to 3 inches of mulch over the bare soil. Pull it back a couple of inches from stems, crowns and trunks so nothing sits wet against the plant.
Look at each plant's winter form as you go. Note which grasses and evergreens hold structure, so you can repeat them next year.
Lift a grass that ended up in the wrong place, such as Sesleria, and drop it into a gap in the border. Dig wide enough to keep the root ball whole.
Repeat one plant along a path to give the border rhythm, the way lamb's ear runs along the edge of a long perennial bed.
Fill gaps in a meadow-style bed with asters such as 'Mönch'. They carry the colour on after the liatris has finished.
Move a rose such as 'Danae' while it is dormant, then firm it in and water it well so the roots settle before the ground freezes.
Think twice before adding a tree. Check its final size, its roots and the shade it will cast over the border in a few years.
Site astrantia where it gets sun for part of the day and shade in the afternoon. Watch where the summer sun falls before you plant.
Tips and common mistakes
Wait until the soil has cooled and had a frost or two before mulching, or you keep roots warm and plants keep growing.
Photograph each bed before you edit it so you can see next spring what actually worked.
Keep mulch off crowns and stems, since damp mulch piled against a plant can rot it over winter.
Water any perennial you move in fall right up until the ground freezes.
Questions
When should I mulch flower beds for winter?
After the soil has cooled and you have had a frost or two. Mulching too early traps warmth and keeps plants growing when they should be winding down.
Can I move perennials in fall?
Yes, most hardy perennials can be lifted and moved once they have finished flowering and the weather has cooled. Keep the root ball intact and water the plant in well.
Should I cut everything back before mulching?
Clear spent annuals and any diseased foliage. Leave seed heads and ornamental grasses standing, since they feed birds and give the bed winter structure.
This guide was drafted from the video's details and general task knowledge. It has not been checked against the full video. Check the video and relevant product instructions before following a procedure. Report a correction.
