October What To Do Now Calendar

Care for houseplants – Clean foliage, water regularly and fertilize. Repot as necessary. For more information on caring for houseplants, go to the Bayer Advanced houseplant page. To feed and protect from insects, use Bayer Advanced™ 2-in-1 Insect Control plus Fertilizer Plant Spikes – no spraying, no mess. Just push the spikes into the soil for up to eight weeks of nutrition and protection. To control existing insects, use Bayer Advanced™ Dual Action Rose & Flower Insect Killer Ready-To-Use. Bring houseplants back indoors before temperatures drop into the 50s.

Care for roses – Remove faded flowers, cutting back to the first leaf with five leaflets. Roses, such as floribundas and shrubs, which bloom in clusters, can be lightly sheared after blooms fade. Feed and protect from insects and disease with Bayer Advanced™ All-In-One Rose & Flower Care Concentrate. If you have spider mites, use Bayer Advanced™ 2-in-1 Systemic Rose & Flower Care Granules. This systemic product controls numerous insects and mites while feeding your roses. To control mites and diseases, such as black spot and powdery mildew, use Bayer Advanced™ 3-in-1 Insect, Disease & Mite Control Ready-To-Use. If rose diseases are your problem, use Bayer Advanced™ Disease Control for Roses, Flowers & Shrubs Concentrate.

Control fire ants – Treat mounds with Bayer Advanced™ Fire Ant Killer Dust (available in both dust and granular formulations).

Control indoor/outdoor pests – To control pests like spiders, fleas and cockroaches, use Bayer Advanced™ Home Pest plus Germ* Killer Indoor and Outdoor Insect Killer Ready-To-Spray, the only non-aerosol home pest killer that kills insects and reduces up to 99.9% of the germs* they may leave behind. For easier-than-ever control of roaches, use Bayer Advanced™ Dual Action Roach Killer Power Pen® Ready-To-Use. For more information, visit the Bayer Advanced home pest control Web page. If just outdoor ants are your problem and you prefer to use a granule, use Bayer Advanced™ Triple Action Ant Killer Granules.

*Staphylococcus aureus and Enterobacter aerogenes on hard, non-porous, non-food contact surfaces. No residual sanitizer action. Not for primary use as a sanitizer.

Control lawn pests – This is your last chance this year to solve your grub problems. Apply Bayer Advanced™ 24-Hour Grub Killer Plus Granules to control white grubs. It starts working overnight to rid your lawn of this destructive pest. And if you think you have both grubs and other lawn pests use Bayer Advanced™ Complete Insect Killer For Soil & Turf Concentrate. Its two-way formula provides both excellent belowground grub control and thorough aboveground, grass-feeding insect control. Click here for more on white grubs and other lawn pests. Apply Bayer Advanced™ 24-Hour Grub Killer Plus Granules. Use Bayer Advanced™ PowerForce® Multi-Insect Killer Concentrate to control other lawn pests, including sod webworms, chinch bugs and mole crickets.

Control lawn weeds – Weeds compete with grasses for water and nutrients and make your lawn look lousy. A well-cared-for lawn will resist weed invasions. Now Bayer Advanced has simplified lawn-weed control, making it easier than ever to kill both broadleaf and grassy weeds. Bayer Advanced™ All-In-One Lawn Weed & Crabgrass Killer Ready-To-Use kills over 200 types of broadleaf weeds, including dandelions and clover, PLUS grassy weeds like crabgrass and nutgrass – without harming your lawn (not for use on St. Augustine grass, Bahia, bentgrass, carpetgrass, centipede grass or Dichondra). The line features the most convenient and easy way to treat all of your weeds PLUS Crabgrass – the Bayer Advanced™ All-In-One Lawn Weed & Crabgrass Killer Ready-To-Spray – just hook to your hose and go. It also comes in Ready-To-Use containers, ideal for spot treatments, and concentrate for larger areas. Ready-to-use formulations contain SmartTrack®, a nonstaining red marker that shows which weeds have been sprayed before it slowly fades away. One application in fall will kill many weeds when they are small and easier to control than they will be next spring. One application in fall will kill many weeds when they are small and easier to control than they will be next spring. Apply only when daytime temperatures will remain below 85 degrees.

Control slugs and snails – Protect flowers, vegetables and other tender plants with Bayer Advanced™ Dual Action Snail & Slug Killer Bait Granules.

Control whiteflies – Use Bayer Advanced™ 12-Month Tree & Shrub Protect & Feed Concentrate or Bayer Advanced™ Tree & Shrub Protect & Feed Granules on ornamentals such as hibiscus, gardenia and ash.

Fertilize lawns – This is one of the most important times of the year to feed cool-season lawns like Kentucky bluegrass and fescues.

Fertilize plants – Fall is an ideal time to fertilize landscape plants. Even though growth of many plants is slowing, roots can still absorb nutrients.

Mow – Lawns are growing vigorously. Mow weekly. Be sure to sharpen the blades and tune up the lawn mower for peak efficiency.

Plant flowers – Plant cool-season annuals like pansies, sweet peas, violas and primroses for fall and winter bloom. Nurseries are full of beautifully colored mums. Use them to enliven your fall garden. And don’t forget hardy perennials like penstemon, gaillardia, phlox and iberis. Sow wildflower seeds. It’s also a great time (you have until mid-November) to plant spring bulbs, such as crocus, daffodils, hyacinths and tulips. Protect new plantings from insects with Bayer Advanced™ Dual Action Rose & Flower Insect Killer Ready-To-Use. It kills pests immediately on contact and keeps killing by systemic action for a month. One thorough spray saves you time and money.

Plant lawns – Start cool-season lawns like tall fescues. Overseed Bermudagrass lawns with ryegrass or tall fescue to keep them green all winter. For more on lawn planting and overseeding, click here.

Plant trees and shrubs – Autumn is the best time of year for new landscaping. The coming cooler weather will ease establishment and make sure plants get off to a strong start next spring. Plant new trees and shrubs, including roses from containers. Feed and protect new plantings with Bayer Advanced™ 12-Month Tree & Shrub Protect & Feed Concentrate or Bayer Advanced™ Tree & Shrub Protect & Feed Granules. Water carefully.

Plant vegetables and herbs – Plant quick-growing, cool-season crops like carrots, chard and lettuce for fall harvest. Plant hardy herbs like rosemary, parsley, garlic and thyme. Water carefully until plants are established. Protect vegetables listed on the label from insect pests with Bayer Advanced™ Complete Insect Killer for Gardens Ready-To-Use, Bayer Advanced™ PowerForce® Multi-Insect Killer Concentrate or Bayer Advanced™ .

Protect trees and shrubs – Protect valuable trees and shrubs from next year’s insects, including aphids, scale and borers, with Bayer Advanced™ 12-Month Tree & Shrub Protect & Feed Concentrate or Bayer Advanced™ Tree & Shrub Protect & Feed Granules. One application in fall feeds and protects for up to 12 months. Handpick bagworms to reduce next year’s problem.

Rake – Raking our lawns to make our property neat is a good idea, but we need to keep our grass raked of dead leaves for a much more important reason. All plants, including grass, get energy via photosynthesis. If the grass is covered, it cannot make energy. Strong grass overwinters much better and gets off to a faster start next spring.

Water – Continue to monitor irrigation systems. Fix clogs and broken sprinklers. Adjust spray heads. Adjust watering schedules to supplement rainfall. Water less frequently as the weather cools, but be certain to water deeply. What’s the best way to calculate how much water your irrigation system delivers at each sprinkling? Place straight-sided coffee cups randomly around your beds. After the irrigation cycle is completed, measure how much water you collected in each cup. Anything less than 1/2 inch is too little to provide a deep watering. Apply a fresh layer of organic mulch to conserve moisture (but not more than 3 to 4 inches total).

Water lawns – Water less often as weather cools. Consult your local water department for lawn watering guidelines. What’s the best way to calculate how much water your irrigation system delivers at each sprinkling? Place five straight-sided coffee cups randomly around your lawn. After the irrigation cycle is completed, measure how much water you collected. Anything less than 1/2 inch is too little to provide a deep watering. For more tips on how to water your lawn efficiently, click here.