Provided is a list of tasks you need to perform in your garden during September. Please understand your gardening zone which is identified in the menu above. Look for Hardiness Zones.
Zone 1
- Sow wildflower seeds
- Water to winterize trees and shrubs
- Clean up vegetable and perennial gardens
- Plant spring-blooming bulbs
- Apply winterizing formula lawn fertilizer (with high potassium)
- Clean out greenhouse and sterilize bench tops
- Sow salad greens and make or buy a cold frame for frost protection
- Bring in bonsai, scented geraniums, poinsettias and Christmas cactus and set up grow lights if necessary
- Take cuttings of annuals and herbs for indoor rooting
- Clean off birdfeeders; clean out and put away birdbaths for the winter
Zone 2
- Prune tomato roots to hasten ripening
- Winterize trees and shrubs with deep waterings
- Dethatch and aerate lawns
- Sow salad greens and get the cold frame ready
- Clean up rose bed and apply fungicide one last time to mildew and blackspot prone varieties
- Harvest apples; put spoiled fruit in compost pile
- Clean off birdfeeders and restock with seed
- Deadhead chrysanthemum plants to prolong bloom
- Plant garlic for harvest next summer
- Sow wildflower seed for bloom next spring
Zone 3
- Divide peonies and other spring and summer-blooming perennials
- Plant perennials
- Plant bare-root and containerized trees and shrubs
- Sow wildflower seed for spring bloom
- Plant spring-blooming bulbs
- Dethatch and aerate lawns
- If September rainfall is scarce, water trees and shrubs to keep them supple and prevent winter damage
- Clean and restock birdfeeders
- Plant garlic for harvest next summer
- Set out bareroot peonies
Zone 4
- Harvest apples and store in a cool place
- Plant garlic
- Dethatch and aerate the lawn
- Clean out rose beds and apply fungicide one last time to susceptible varieties
- Plant perennials
- Move tender houseplants, etc. indoors after rinsing and reporting, and set up a grow light to supplement natural light
- Clean and restock bird feeders
- Begin to move tropical water lilies and other tender aquatics indoors
- Plant spring-blooming bulbs; refrigerate those you intend to force
- Set out bareroot peonies
Zone 5
- Set out transplants of cool-weather vegetables
- Plant winter-hardy pansies and fall annuals (calendula, dianthus, ornamental cabbage and kale)
- Plant tag teams of perennials and spring-blooming bulbsthat will complement each other or bloom in sequence next season
- Water trees and shrubs when rainfall is scarce to “winterize” them
- Dethatch and aerate the lawn
- Dehead chrysanthemum plants to keep flower buds forming through the fall
- Clean out rose beds; apply fungicide; leave hips for wintercolor and bird food
- Prune summer-bearing raspberries
- Mow back strawberry plants; remove weeds and remulch
- Move tender houseplants, etc. indoors after rinsing andrepotting, and set up a grow light to supplement natural light
Zone 6
- Set out cool-weather vegetable transplants, including salad greens, broccoli, kale and cabbage
- Plant garlic and leeks
- Prune cane fruits such as raspberries and blackberries
- Plant winter pansies and fall annuals (calendula, dianthus, ornamental cabbage and kale)
- Plant tag teams of perennials and spring-blooming bulbsthat will complement each other or bloom in sequence next season
- As tops die back, harvest potatoes, onions and garlic
- Plant peonies
- Plant fall-blooming bulbs to brighten up fading window boxes, planters and in drifts among ornamental grasses
- Continue to harvest herbs, grasses and flowers for drying
- Divide peonies, bearded iris and other spring- and summer-blooming perennials.
Zone 7
- Set out transplants of cool-weather vegetables
- Prune cane fruits such as raspberries and blackberries
- Plant winter pansies and fall annuals (calendula, dianthus, ornamental cabbage and kale)
- Plant peonies
- Plant fall-blooming bulbs to brighten up fading windowboxes, planters and in drifts among ornamental grasses
- Continue to harvest herbs and flowers for drying
- Divide peonies, bearded iris and other spring- and summer-blooming perennials
- Plant bareroot trees and shrubs
- Order sweet pea seedlings for fall planting
- Plant herbs and groundcovers as the weather cools
Zone 8
- Plant bareroot trees and shrubs
- Order sweet pea seedlings for fall planting
- Set out second crop of tomato and pepper plants
- Sow seeds of green beans, squash, pumpkins and cucumbers
- Divide bearded iris and other overcrowded spring- and summer-blooming perennials
- Prune cane fruits
- Continue to harvest herbs and flowers for drying
- Sow seeds of perennials and keep soil moist if rainfall is scarce
- Start cool-weather vegetables from seed now or set out store-bought transplants later in the month
- Plant winter pansies and fall annuals (calendula, dianthus, ornamental cabbage and kale
Zone 9
- Order sweet pea seedlings for fall planting
- Plant fall- and winter-blooming perennial plants
- Prune summer-flowering shrubs and vines
- Plant winter pansies and fall annuals (calendula, dianthus, ornamental cabbage and kale) later in the month
- Deeply irrigate trees and shrubs every few weeks
- Plan for spring bulb gardens by seeking out specialty bulbs (species tulips, Dutch iris, anemone, ranunculus) that thrive in rainy winter, dry summer climates
- Groom and fertilize hanging basket and container plants to keep them thriving through the fall
- Sow cool-weather vegetable seeds
- Clean out rose beds and reapply fungicide to disease-prone varieties
- Sow seeds of perennials and keep soil moist if rainfall is scarce
Zone 10
- Order roses for fall planting
- Sow cool-season vegetable seeds
- Prune summer-flowering shrubs and vines after bloom
- Sow seeds of perennials and keep soil moist if rainfall is scarce
- Deeply irrigate trees and shrubs every few weeks
- Plant fall- and winter-blooming perennials
- Groom and fertilize hanging basket and container plants to keep them thriving through the fall
- Set out second round of tomato and pepper plants
- Sow seeds of green beans, squash, pumpkins and cucumbers
- Clean out rose beds, prune lightly and reapply fungicide to disease-prone varieties
Zone 11
- Sow seeds of desert wildflowers
- Groom and fertilize hanging basket and container plants to keep them thriving through the fall
- Sow seed of cool-weather vegetables
- Order roses for fall planting
- Set out second round of tomato and pepper plants
- Sow seeds of green beans, squash, pumpkins and cucumbers
- Deeply irrigate trees and shrubs every few weeks
- Clean out rose beds, prune lightly and reapply fungicide to disease-prone varieties
- Continue to harvest summer vegetables to encourage more fruits to form
- Build a compost pile for fall soil improvement
