The Most Important Thing You Can Do

One year back when we were poorer and I didn't realize that I could get bales of straw for my birthday, Fathers day and Christmas, I mowed a field for mulch. I worked it down about 8" into the soil in a plot that got rich, black and fluffy. It looked like such loose ground that I decided to plant potatoes in it because they would be so easy to harvest. Bad idea..

The field had Star Thistle in it and the thistles were the last thing to decompose. Harvesting potatoes that year was a prickly affair ..

The most important thing you can do for your garden during fall cleanup is to much. All the plants that come out will leave dirt exposed to the elements. Erosion and compaction can result when rain batters the ground. Covering exposed soil is the cornerstone to healthy gardens. You can use leaves, straw, hay, compost, tree shreddings, shavings and discarded plants. I sometimes let the artist in me combine the organic mulches into patterns..

Arcs of dark compost, swirls of tan leaves, and circles of bright straw. Think "Starry Night" by Van Gogh. It's a good time to re-establish your pathways now that the area is open. New pathways can be incorporated to reflect the way you traveled last year, and old, unused pathways eliminated..

October is a good month to incorporate organic material into your garden soil. It will have time to decompose through the winter, so it won't rob nitrogen from your spring plantings. The garden is open and cleared of summer plantings, and the soil is not too wet. November rains are on the way and rototilling may be impossible until spring..

Planting a cover crop of winter rye or clover is beneficial to the soil and will be gaining popularity as the new generation of enlightened gardeners begins practicing sustainable agriculture. A benefit of fall fertilizing is that you can use green manure, and not have to spend the time and energy to compost it. Turning compost piles is a labor for youthful gardeners..

Leaves are falling like manna from heaven. Bag them up and save them for spring if you don't need them now. You can make a pile in a corner of your garden and cover it with a tarp. Last year I had a vacant horse stall next to the garden gate that I stored them in. I got about ten wheelbarrow loads of them before I moved on to something else. I also cured the bulb onions in there. Bad idea..

Not enough air circulation. Many got moldy.This year I cured them in the shade in the garden and have had zero losses. The stall was a nice place to store the wheelbarrow too, and I started hanging garlic and hay twine, and left garden tools in there. If you don't have a greenhouse to store tools in, a garden shed would be much appreciated..