Gardeners Checklist: Here is What to Do the Week of September 25

By Ron Kujawski

• Stay alert for frost warnings. Harvest winter squash before they are exposed to frost since frost chilled squash fruit do not keep well in storage.

• Be prepared to water Brussels sprouts, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, chard, carrots, turnips, parsnips, spinach, and arugula should the weather take a dry turn. These vegetables will grow well into fall, even after frost. Harvest these as needed until the ground freezes.  

• Take cuttings from tender perennials such as coleus, pelargonium, fuchsias, osteospermum, scaevola, verbena, and lantana. Make cuts just below a leaf joint. Cuttings should be about three inches long. Remove the lower leaves and any flowers and flower buds that are on the cuttings. Root the cuttings in a pot of moist sand or vermiculite near a bright window but out of direct sunlight. Place a clear plastic bag over the pot to create a mini-greenhouse. Once rooted grow the plants as houseplants near a sunny window or under grow lamps.

• Lower the cutting height of your mower to 2 ½ inches if it is currently at 3 inches. In late October lower the cutting height to 2 inches for final mowing.

• Consider planting ground covers such as pachysandra, lily of the valley, creeping myrtle, Epimedium, or ferns beneath shade trees if grass is struggling to survive. These can be planted now. Alternatively, replace the grass around the base of trees with a three-inch layer of organic mulch such as partially composted wood chips or shredded bark.

• Shred fallen leaves with your mower; rake up the leaves and put them on the compost pile or create a compost pile just for leaves. Screened leaf compost makes a great potting soil for houseplants or for seedlings started indoors in spring.

• Keep planting hardy spring flowering bulbs outdoors but also pot up tender bulbs such as Paper White Narcissus and ‘Soleil d’Or’ Narcissus for forcing indoors. Place the bulbs in shallow containers of pebbles.

• Order a copy of the 2024 UMass Garden Calendar. The 2024 calendar has the usual colorful photos and daily tips that make it a great gift for gardeners. Go to https://ag.umass.edu/landscape/publications-resources/umass-extensions-garden-calendar for information on placing an order.

Ron Kujawski began gardening at an early age on his family's onion farm in upstate New York. Although now retired, he spent most of his career teaching at the UMass Extension Service. He serves on Berkshire Botanical Garden’s Horticulture Advisory Committee. His book, Week-by-Week Vegetable Gardener’s Handbook, is available here.