October Gardening Calendar

• Harvest winter squash and pumpkins before frost. For best storage quality, leave an inch or two of stem on each fruit.
• A few degrees of frost protection may be gained by covering tender plants with sheets or light-weight fabric row covers.
• Persimmons start to ripen, especially after frost.
• Broadleaf herbicides can be applied now to control cool season weeds such as chickweed and dandelion.
• Transplant deciduous trees once they have dropped their leaves.
• Monitor fruit plantings for mouse activity and take steps for their control if present.
• Continue mowing lawns until growth stops.
• Keep leaves raked off lawns to prevent smothering grass.
• Trees may be fertilized now. This is best done following soil test guidelines.
• Place wire guards around trunks of young fruit trees for protection against mice and rabbits.
• Winterize lawn mowers before storage.