Move your houseplants back indoors.
Gardening Tasks by Month for Alpharetta, GA
Gardening Tasks for October
Alpharetta, GA
Plant hardy annuals, such as poppies, pansies, and larkspur.
If your lawn is losing color, try overseeding with annual ryegrass when temperatures are in the low 70s.
Apply a pre-emergent herbicide to your lawn to control winter weeds. Apply when nighttime temperatures are 55 to 60 degrees for 4 to 5 days.
Continue mowing and watering your lawn until it stops growing. Avoid fertilizing the lawn, as this could encourage tender growth that might be damaged during the winter.
Apply a layer of mulch around your newly planted shrubs and trees.
Continue planting any trees and shrubs. They will have time to establish themselves before the spring.
If you are planning on planting wildflower seeds, prepare the soil now. Till the soil thoroughly to a depth of 4 to 5 inches. Prepare a seed mixture of many different kinds.
Divide and replant crowded perennials.
If you have any tropical or subtropical container plants, move them indoors when the temperature drops to the 40s.
Plant cool-weather annuals such as foxglove, petunia, and Shasta daisy.
Try planting daffodils. Find varieties that fit your region.
Set strawberry plants this month in a garden bed or container. Water well.
Plant seeds or transplants of cool-season vegetables, such as broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, carrots, onions, spinach, and turnips.
Test your garden soil for its pH levels. Contact your local Cooperative Extension office for a soil kit. Then, apply lime, sulfur, and fertilizer according to the soil-test results.
Divide and replant crowded perennials. This is the last month to plant any new perennials and biennials.
Divide and replant perennials and bulbs that have become overcrowded or too large.
Add leaves and organic material to your compost pile.
Add organic matter to all planting areas. Be sure there’s an inch-thick layer of mulch on your garden beds to control weeds.
This month usually brings mild weather. Plant or transplant cool-weather crops such as beets, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, collards, lettuce, mustard, onions, radishes, spinach, and turnips.
Harvest herbs and store in a cool, dry place.
Continue to harvest peppers and tomatoes and start keeping an eye out for possible frost.
Lightly prune shrubs if they need it so that any new growth will harden off before the cold weather.
Be sure to divide and replant any crowded plants. It is important to increase the air circulation between plants so that the plants can dry out between rain showers.
Continue another planting hardy vegetable crops that mature quickly. Good choices are turnips, mustard, radishes, and spring onions.
Every month, mow your lawn to the recommended height (St. Augustine and Bahia: 3 to 4 inches; Centipede: 1.5 to 2 inches; Dwarf St. Augustine: 2.5 inches).
Ensure that your garden is watered if it is getting less than 1 inch of rain per week.