We are entering the (official) final weekend of summer, as autumn begins on this coming Monday, September 23rd. Do you plan to spend some time out in the garden or working on your lawn over the weekend?
Keith Mickler, UGA Extension Agent for Floyd County, states that now is the prime time to plant cool season crops.
Just like people, plants need the chance to cool down from the summer heat, asserts Mickler. Cooler temperatures over the evening hours allow plants to recover overnight for optimal growth during the daytime.
This is also an ideal time for lawn care enthusiasts to apply all pre-emergent herbicides, indicates Mickler, who also recommends the fertilization of cool-season lawns to include grasses like fescue. Both need water, either via rain or an irrigation system.
Mickler encourages lawn and garden enthusiasts to obtain a soil test from his office to ensure optimal growth this fall. The cost is $9 per test. Soil samples should be taken to the UGA Extension Office, located inside Floyd County’s Administration Building on East Fourth Avenue. For more information, call (706) 295-6210. Test results are typically available within a week and a half, attests Mickler.
A taste of fall weather will continue in the Greater Rome area as we head into the weekend, predicts the National Weather Service. Today’s highs will again be in the mid 80s; skies will be sunny. Overnight lows will dip into the upper 50s; clear skies are also forecast for tonight. A bit warmer temperatures have been predicted for the final two days of summer on Saturday and Sunday and into the first days of autumn.