Garden work in October
In October harvesting, preparation and planting of fruit and berry plants for the winter is over. In the second decade of October, fogs and frosts already appear, the first snow may fall out. As folk wisdom says: "October will cover the earth, where there is a leaf, where there is snow", so it is necessary to hurry with carrying out urgent works in the garden.
In the first decade, the harvesting of winter varieties of apples and pears is being completed. Planting and transplanting of fruit trees and berry bushes is conducted. The soil around the trunks and around the bushes is being dug. Before digging the soil, it is necessary to introduce organic and mineral fertilizers into the soil. The soil of the truncated circles is covered with manure, peat or humus.
In the second ten-day period of October, before the leaf fall, water-charged watering is carried out. The soil layer should be moistened evenly, no less than 60 cm deep. This is done in order to reduce the risk of freezing of the root system of fruit trees and winter drying of the aboveground part of the soil.
In fruiting trees, thick branches and stems must be cleared of the dead part of the bark, lichens, and mosses. Dupla should be sealed, and after the end of rains, whitewash with a solution of lime with clay.
If there are many mosses and lichens on fruit-bearing trees, then it is necessary to spray 5% with ferrous sulfate solution (500 g per 10 l / in).
Raspberries, gooseberries and currants in case of their infection with rust or anthracnose, should be sprinkled with a one-percent solution of the Bordeaux liquid (100 g of copper sulfate and freshly lime for 10 l / in). You can spray and iron sulfate (400-500 g per 10 l / in). Branches of trees should be tied, and tying the stems with reeds, spruce lapnik, raspberry or tar. This strapping is done to protect trees from early spring sunburn and rodents.
Strawberries are sheltered at the end of October with peat or humus, without falling asleep a heart. This is done if there is little snow. Bushes of gooseberries and currants are also tied to protect them from breakage under the weight of snow.
Raspberry shoots of two adjacent shrubs cautiously tilt to each other and bind with twine or bast and at the same time bend to the ground. This is done in order to preserve raspberries from freezing. If you decide to bend the bushes in one direction, then you need to tie the tops of the shoots of one bush to the base of the shoots of the other.
Saplings, unused this year, should be dug for winter storage. At the same time, pits for spring planting are being prepared.
The site of the garden is cleaned from the leaves, cut branches and fallen leaves, as they can serve as a shelter for mice and other garden pests. After the garden is cleaned, the poisoned bait for the mice should be disposed of.
