Niki Jabbour’s top tips for fall gardens
You’re moving more than you think.
Gardening is a great way to make your move. It also has other benefits like sparking joy, improving mental wellness and boosting mindfulness.
We wanted to dig in to the idea of gardening as a strategy for feeling good, so we phoned up Niki Jabbour, a Nova Scotia gardening expert and bestselling author with thousands of fans on social media. Here’s what she had to say:
A passion for plants and flowers has been deeply rooted in my life for as long as I can remember. As a child, I used to sit in fields of forget-me-nots. I picked bouquets for my mother. I planted seeds. Many of us grew up with parents or grandparents who gardened. We built tree forts. We jumped rope.
We moved and played and had a ball – outdoors.
The benefits of movement in the garden
We need to reconnect with that joy and keep moving as we age. Gardening is a great pathway to achieve both goals. For me to still be gardening, it makes me happy. The business of gardening, social media and writing means I’m often inside on my computer working. I have deadlines, like many of us.
Taking a break and going to my garden, getting my body moving and relaxing my mind, it rejuvenates me. It recharges my batteries. I love to get my fingers dirty. Even things like harvesting my own vegetables – it’s mentally satisfying to provide organic food for my family.
Stretch before big tasks
If I have serious gardening tasks to tackle, I always stretch first.
With gardening, I’m always doing different tasks – planting, turning the compost pile, planting bulbs. I’m using different muscles in my body, so it’s a nice overall workout for my arms, legs and core.
If you have issues with your knees, hips or back, there are tools that can help alleviate stresses and strains on the body. You can buy knee pads, kneelers and stools to make it more comfortable. A great local resource for these items is Lee Valley.
Don’t spring clean your garden in fall
One of the biggest mistakes gardeners make is spring cleaning the garden in fall: cutting down stalks of dead perennials, getting rid of absolutely every leaf, removing plants passed their prime.
Instead, take a hands-off approach and leave the debris behind. Beneficial insects overwinter in gardens. Whether they’re native bees, caterpillars or chrysalises, one could be rolled up in a leaf or hiding in a hollow stem of your ornamental grasses.
The best time to tidy is mid-spring, once we’ve had a week or two of temperatures over 10 degrees Celsius. By then, most insects have woken up and gone their merry way. You’ll encourage biodiversity and protect ecosystems. The more insect diversity you have in your garden, the healthier it’s going to be, and the fewer pests you’ll have.
What’s on my fall to-do list
Many tasks can get us moving and get a jumpstart on spring. If you don’t have a garden, try building a raised bed for planting vegetables. It’s also a good time to make new beds for shrubs, trees and perennials.
Plant the latter about a month before the ground freezes. We still have several weeks for planting all of these and the soil is warmer now than it will be in spring.
If you already have a vegetable garden, it’s the season for planting garlic. Prepare your bed and plant the cloves. Place a bit of mulch on top, either some leaves or straw, and then let it sit. The garlic will pop up in early spring and you’ll have a nice summer bounty.
For a DYI project, build a cold frame for season extending. Or make a compost bin from old pallets or chicken wire and wooden stakes. As you clean your vegetable garden, plant debris and kitchens scraps, add in some leaves and you’ll create free food for your soil.
Fall bulbs
I’m also planting bulbs for spring beauties: tulips, daffodils, crocus, grape hyacinth, ornamental onions, and many more. I usually plant these in late October.
Before buying bulbs, think about your landscape. If you battle with deer, avoid tulips and stick to pest-resistant bulbs like daffodils, ornamental onions and crocus. Most bulbs need full sun, or at least six to eight hours of sunshine, and well-drained soil. Don’t plant bulbs in places where water pools.
Place a little bit of compost in the hole before you plant. The rule of thumb for any type of bulb planting: place the bulb three times as deep as the diameter of the blub. If a tulip is two inches across, plant it six inches deep.
Planting bulbs is a chance to be mindful. Take a deep breath and really look around you. Take it all in – the colours, sounds and smells.
Gardening boom in the east
According to a recent study by Dalhousie University, Atlantic Canada has seen the biggest boom of new food gardeners in Canada. The study found that 23.7% of Atlantic Canadians gardening in 2020 are new gardeners. That’s a staggering number and one of the silver linings of the pandemic.
I’m seeing the results of the boom, too. I have lots of new followers and many people are telling me they’re gardening for the first time. People are staying home more. They’ve created backyard living spaces, planted perennials, vegetables, trees and shrubs. They’ve landscaped, and built gazebos and pergolas. These efforts are making our communities more beautiful and sustainable.
While the air is getting chillier and frost is more frequent, there’s still plenty of gardening and outside chores to tackle. And with them, plenty of opportunity to get moving in the garden this autumn.
Niki Jabbour’s fourth book ‘Growing Under Cover: techniques for a more productive, weather resistant, pest-free vegetable garden,’ is available December 2020. Check out her website for more gardening tips and ideas.