Here are tasks to tackle and things to be concerned with in the garden this month:
IN THE EDIBLE GARDEN
Frost damage control. Frosts in the Chicago area, which usually occur in mid-October, are often followed by a few weeks of good growing weather. Tender vegetables such as tomatoes and peppers can be protected from frost damage with layers of newspapers, blankets, tarps, sheets or floating row covers. Remove coverings soon after sunrise. Cabbage, broccoli, kale, collards and turnips can withstand light frosts. The cold will improve their flavor. After a killing frost, remove dead plants. If plants were not diseased, they can be turned into the soil or placed in a compost pile. Spread 2 to 3 inches of organic matter over the garden and dig it in.
Have soil tested. For a listing of soil-testing labs, go to www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/soiltest or call 773-233-0476. Contact the lab ahead of time for information about cost and tests available.
Get a Halloween pumpkin. For a listing of pumpkin farms, call 773-233-0476 or see www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/pumpkins.
Learn more. Become a Master Gardener. Classes start in January at Garfield Park Conservatory. Classes include botany, soils, woody ornamentals, vegetables, herbaceous plants, organic gardening and more. Apply online at http://web.extension.uiuc.edu/county/survey.cfm ID=50, or call 773-233-0476.
IN THE ORNAMENTAL GARDEN
Defend bulbs. To keep squirrels from digging up bulbs, plant in masses. Place the bulbs at their correct depth and cover with half of the soil you removed. Then cover with chicken wire. Cover the chicken wire with the remaining soil. The bulb foliage will grow through the holes.
Delay pruning trees and shrubs. Pruning now may not allow the plant to harden off before cold weather sets in. Prune in February or March.
Let perennials stand. Seed heads will provide food for birds through winter. Plants will also trap snow, which will help to insulate the plants from cold temperatures and will add some interest to the drab winter landscape. You can cut back plants next spring.
———-
Ronald C. Wolford is an extension educator in urban gardening for the University of Illinois Extension. To obtain the extension’s fact sheets, call 773-233-0476 or see the Web site at http://web.extension.uiuc.edu/cook/urban hort.html.
