Perennials - Perennials should be cut back after blooming and reset this month (October). Perennials set now will be established and ready to grow in the spring. Some of the biennials tend to become perennials in our gardens, and occasionally a half-hardy annual lives on and on.

If you have not yet cleaned up all litter or garden trash, be sure it is done this fall. Do not provide a winter home for insect pests.

Chrysanthemums - October is the month of heaviest bloom for this queen of fall flowers. The most important thing to remember is to provide plenty of water for them. They are heavy feeders (which should have been taken care of in September) and heavy drinkers. Visit the fall shows and gardens of chrysanthemums and write down names of varieties you like and try them another year. The fall shows are wonderful places to see the best in the seasonal flowers. Keep a close check on the weather, and before killing frost lift clumps of chrysanthemums and put in the garage or basement for continued bloom. A few may even be potted and kept in the house. An additional month of flowers may be had in this way.

Soil Preparation - In open spaces in the garden, dig the soil deep, adding a little complete fertilizer. Or plant some type of cover crop and turn it under for a green manure. Soil preparation can go on all year in a garden. Just turning the soil will keep it in good tilth.

Miscellaneous - Take cuttings of herbaceous plants like the donkey ears plant and root them for next year’s garden. Many gardeners carry over plants of all kinds like the donkey ears plant simply as rooted cuttings taken during October. The cutting wood should be firm and seasoned, and not soft and succulent, for best results. Plant pansy seeds for transplanting next month. Pansies are the chief source of bloom in many winter gardens. Continue planting the garden lilies started last month.

Visit the countryside and gather seed pods, weeds and flowers for drying. Many interesting materials are available for winter bouquets, and October is the month for collecting and drying them. Divide and replant peonies, or plant new ones, this month.

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Composting can provide many benefits, but when you are first getting started, it can be somewhat confusing. It is a mixture of nutrients and micro-organisms. They are typically available in powder form and poured into holes within the compost pile. What is a compost activator and how does it benefit your compost? The compost activator is also sometimes referred to as a compost inoculate.

Herbal compost activators may contain such ingredients as dandelion, chamomile, yarrow, oak bark, nettle, valerian and honey. The pile will then be efficiently composted within one month to three months, depending on the time of year. There are also other types of natural compost activators that are produced from other materials such as comfrey leaves, chicken manure and grass clippings. You can choose to add compost activators to your compost pile when you first start it in order to give it a kick start or you can add compost activators in at different times of the year as you see that they are required. Generally, compost piles will take some time to decompose naturally on their own.

This is something that you naturally want to avoid, therefore the need for the compost activator. When utilizing these types of compost activators, they are usually just added to directly on top of the other compost scraps. One element that you will run across and need to understand is the compost activator. A compost activator can also be used to provide the heat activation that the compost pile needs when the weather is below 50 F. Herbal compost activators are completely natural and work efficiently and quickly.

The ingredient mix in herbal compost activators creates a compost pile that has a sweet scent to it. While you could certainly allow your compost pile to decompose on its own without adding in a compost activator, you run the risk of attracting odors and flies as well as other pests to your compost pile. A compost activator works by providing the nitrogen that a compost pile typically lacks naturally on its own. Nutrients, including potassium, may also be added to these compost activators. The holes are then filled back in.

It is added to the compost pile for the express purpose of speeding up the breakdown of the scraps in the pile. Other options for compost activators include fish, cottonseed, alfalfa meals and bone meal.