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Plants for Fall Color and Garden Interest

Fall can be one of the most colorful times in the garden, especially when plants are selected to provide flowers, foliage, berries and other forms of seasonal interest. A combination of annuals, perennials, shrubs and trees can extend the garden's display well into the fall while providing valuable food for pollinators and wildlife.  >>Read the Full Article

Related Videos:
​Refreshing Planters for Fall
Aster
Sedums
Planting a Butterfly Garden

Common Fall Plant Diseases

• Bacterial Leaf Scorch
  
• Removing a Rose Cane After Rose Cane Borer
  

Fall Rose Care

• Shrubs for a Versatille Landscape
  
• Fall Garden Problems

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This Week in the Garden

Spraying Bt on Cauliflower

This week in the garden Peter Richards shows how to spray Bt or bacillus thuringiensis on a cauliflower plant to kill the worms feeding on it. Bt will kill cabbage loopers and imported cabbage worms on cauliflower, cabbage, and broccoli.  >>Watch

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Garden Notes
Late Fall Flowers

Autumn joy sedum and asters are some of the last flowers to bloom in the fall. University of Memphis Director of Landscape Joellen Dimond says that not only are they beautiful, but they also provide food for pollinators right before winter.  >>Watch

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Propagating Ferns from Spores

Ferns are one of the most primitive vascular plants in the world today. Gardeners can propagate ferns by dividing and sometimes with cutting rhizomes, but in nature ferns reproduce by spores. Kim Rucker the Greenhouse manager at Dixon Gallery and Gardens tells how to propagate ferns from the spores.   >>Watch

• How do I take care of Boston Ferns especially in the winter?
  
• Why are my fern fronds dying?

The Q&A Show

Viewers asked, we answered. Garden experts answer real viewer questions covering common plant and landscape issues. Practical advice grounded in horticulture experience for home gardeners dealing with everyday garden problems.  >>Watch

• Why did the leaves on my marigolds disappear?
• What is happening to my bee balm? It is not blooming.
  

Why Aren’t Your Hydrangeas Blooming?

Few shrubs are as dependable for adding color to the garden as hydrangeas—when the flowers cooperate. But many gardeners have found that their hydrangeas have produced few or no flowers in recent years. Several factors can be responsible, but weather and the timing of flower bud development are among the biggest.  >>Read the full article.

• ​Understanding Why Hydrangeas Fail to Bloom
  
• Common Hydrangeas

Pineapple Lily 

UT Assistant Professor of Residential and Consumer Horticulture, Natalie Bumgarner, talks about the eucomis or pineapple lily. It is native to South Africa and can grow in zones 7 and up, or, with protection sometimes in zone 6. The pineapple lily gets its name from the flower stalk, which resembles a pineapple.  >>Watch

• Lily Basics
  
• Daylily Basics

Saving Seeds

Saving seeds from your garden can help perpetuate the varieties you like, and save money in the process. Retired MSU Extension Horticulture Specialist Dr. Lelia Kelly talks about the right time and conditions to harvest seeds for saving. She also shows how to separate the harvested seeds from the plant and how to prepare them for storage.  >>Watch

• ​Harvesting Seeds in the Carrot Family
• Collecting Milkweed Seeds
• Get True Seed from Your Tomatoes

Daffodils

Choosing the Right Material for Raised Beds

Top Trees for Fall Foliage 

Raised Bed Soil Experiment: Early Results

Fungicides

Glyphosate

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Looking for more garden info?

Viewer Questions

How do I move an 8-foot apple tree?

Moving an eight-foot-tall apple tree is possible, but transplanting an established fruit tree is challenging because much of the root system extends well beyond the tree’s canopy. Retired UT Extension Agent Mike Dennison explains how to relocate a mature apple tree, why preserving as much of the root ball as possible is critical, when to transplant an apple tree, and how pruning can help balance the roots with the remaining branches.  >>Watch

What is this bug? Is it bad or good? A: Harlequin Stink Bug

This is a harlequin stink bug, and it is a bad bug. Harlequin stink bugs can damage okra, causing pods to curl and develop unusual bumps or knobs. Learn how to identify these damaging stink bugs, recognize their barrel-shaped eggs on the undersides of leaves, and control them by scouting plants regularly and hand-picking the insects. While insecticides can be used, they must directly contact the bugs to be effective, which may be hard to do.  >>Watch

How do I get rid of oxalis in lily of the valley?

Oxalis growing among lily of the valley can be difficult to remove because its roots and small bulbs are intertwined with the desirable plants. Repeatedly pulling the Oxalis can gradually weaken the root system, but it requires persistence and frequent removal. For severe infestations, carefully applying a systemic herbicide directly to the Oxalis with a cotton glove or paintbrush can help avoid damaging the lily of the valley.  >>Watch

How do you get rid of muskrats?

Muskrats can become a serious problem around ponds and dams when their burrowing weakens levees and embankments. Effective muskrat control can include trapping when conditions provide access to underwater burrows and trails, along with physical barriers and habitat modification to discourage future activity. Riprap, gravel, and properly installed fencing can help protect vulnerable areas and reduce opportunities for muskrats and other wildlife to burrow. Trapping can remove existing muskrats.  >>Watch

What is this plant? Is it safe for cats? A: Amaranth

This weed appears to be a type of amaranth, a group of plants that can quickly produce large quantities of seed and spread throughout nearby pots and garden beds. Because the exact species cannot be determined from the information available, it is best not to allow cats, dogs, or other animals to eat it. Removing the plant while it is still small is a simple way to eliminate the temptation for pets and prevent it from producing seed.  >>Watch

More Questions & Answers

• How do I stop squirrels from burying nuts in my flowerbeds?
  
• Why are my blueberries not producing any fruit?
• How do I propagate crape myrtles?
• Why are my Japanese maples losing branches every year?
• Why didn’t my new alliums bloom?
• Why did my columbine bloom a different color this year?
• How do I prevent bringing pests into my house on my cut flowers?
• What is wrong with my grass? It is black.
• My dogwood is dying.
  Can it be saved?
• What can I do in the fall to get my container soil ready for next year?
• Can verticillium wilt spread to other plants?

Other Questions and Answers