Expert landscaping Tips for September

September is finally here! September is the time to start your Fall planting and stop pruning.

WARNING: DO NOT PRUNE ANYTHING FOR THE NEXT 60 DAYS!  THE NEW GROWTH ON YOUR PLANTS WILL NOT HAVE TIME TO HARDEN BEFORE THE FIRST FROST AND THE PLANT COULD BE DAMAGED OR DIE!!

September is usually when the temperature in Georgia begins to drop.   This is the time when the fall flowers are beginning to bloom, which means that the cooler seasoned yards are going  to need just a little help.

Here are just a few more tips from the expert landscapers here at Bailey Construction & Landscaping Group for the month of September:

• SOIL PREP FOR FALL: Georgia clay requires a gardener's touch to add quality topsoil with a high organic content. We recommend some sand and even perhaps granite sand to assist in the drainage. Clay soil holds water rather than allowing it to be released. Clay has a high content of nutrients, but if they are all balled up in the clay, it does no good to the plants. The sand and the organic material mixed into the clay helps release the nutrients. If you need help with soil delivery or bed construction, we would be happy to help. The Georgia Extension Service can also provide a soil test for you. The cost is reasonable and it can be submitted to the local extension office.
• TURF REQUIREMENTS:
• WARM SEASON TURF/SOD: Warm season grasses are Bermuda, Zoysia, Centipede, and St. Augustine. Now is the time to fertilize, but don't use a fertilizer for with a middle number for Centipede and St. Augustine. Lime is also great to use during the fall season.
• COOL SEASON TURF/SOD: Fescue is a cool season sod. Fescue should be aerated, fertilized (starter fertilizer only), then overseed. Lime will always help the soil condition at a rate of 50 pounds per 1000 square feet. The rain we have had will also loosen the soil a little so the aeration will be easier. The aerator should provide 7 holes per square foot.
• FALL FLOWERS: A good garden design should have blooming flowers all year long. This not only provides you, the homeowner, with visual stimulation, but it gives you something to look forward to as the seasons progress. Some of the perennials you might use are Sasanqua Camellias, Roses, Fragrant Tea Olives, Encore Azaleas, Swamp Sunflowers, or Tartarian Asters(Aster tataricus). There are also first of the month ANNUALS for the winter such as Pansies, Snapdragons, Kale, and Cabbage.
• TREES: Now is the time to begin selection and location for tree installation. Tree installation should be from October to March. Here are a few recommendations for flowering specimen trees:

1.  Japanese Maples: There are many varieties that include Crimson Queen, Red Dragon, Bloodgood, and Coral Bark. These are available in Georgia. Remember site location is critical for these flowering trees.
2. Grancie Gray Beard: These are small Georgia native trees. Their flowers bloom white in the Spring. They are very slow growing, but provide beautiful yellow coloring in the Fall.
3. Oak Scarlett: This oak provides a great red color in the Fall.
4. Cryptomeria: this is a wonderful evergreen that provides privacy/tree screen in any place of your yard. Cryptomerias need plenty of space to grow for they can get very large. can be an alternate to Leyland Cypress.

Bailey Construction & Landscape Group has an expert arborist on staff to assist you in your next tree choice, location, and installation. If you have any questions about what do do in the fall for landscaping, just give us a call at 770-466-8766 or visit our website at www.bclgroupinc.com. Remember, we are located in Snellville, Ga and Loganville, Ga.