Fall is for Planting

Fall is for Planting

By: The Johnston County Nursery Marketing Association

The COVID-19 pandemic created a boom in garden and landscape projects. People went outside to escape from—or to improve—the world around them. Now, with continuously changing work schedules and protocols, many are spending less time in their outdoor space. We urge you to “Keep Outside Alive!” Continue to plant and care for your outdoor spaces all year round. It’s a great investment in your property value and your health.

In Part 2 of our 2021 Fall Series, we talk about why fall is the ideal time to plant perennials, shrubs, and trees in your garden or landscape, and review the JC Raulston Arboretum’s Choice Plants.

Fall Truly is for Planting

“Fall is for Planting” is not a gimmick to sell more plants. Avid gardeners and landscapers know fall is the best season to plant many trees, shrubs, and hardy perennials. Why? Cooler weather = plant growth.

Autumn temperatures are better for root growth than summer heat. Plants thrive in the cool nights, damp soils, and regular rains of fall. Newly planted perennials, shrubs, and trees will establish quickly during the fall season.

Plants can develop roots so long as the soil temperature is above 40 degrees Fahrenheit, in the south, the soil temperature will not drop that low for all of fall, and often into winter. Therefore, plants installed in fall have several months of active root growth during the dormant season. Then, when warmer temperatures arrive in the spring, plants put their energy into growth – rather than setting root – and are well established when the heat of summer returns.

Plant (and Water) Successfully!

For success with all fall plantings:

• Read plant tags to be sure your outside space has the room, light, soil, and water your chosen plant needs to survive and thrive.
• Handle plants properly.
• Water regularly throughout the winter to keep roots and soil moist.
• Hold-off on fertilizing.
• Prune only as needed.
• Ask your garden center professional for help if you need it.

Choose “Choice Plants”

Plan—and Plant for a Better World.

J.C. Raulston

“Choice Plants” are superior selections of new and underused plants for the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic from the JC Raulston Arboretum (JCRA) landscape trials. Plants are chosen for their adaptability, beauty, and overall garden worth and are grown by local nurseries in a collaborative effort between the Johnston County Nursery Marketing Association and the JCRA. The first selections debuted in fall 2012. More selections are regularly added to this line of exceptional garden plants. You can see Choice Program plants at the JC Raulston Arboretum in Raleigh, or to see and learn about each Choice Plant click here: https://jcra.ncsu.edu/horticulture/introductions-and-promotions/index.php. 

Sources:

JC Raulston Arboretum: https://jcra.ncsu.edu