September 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 insect pests, 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 insect pests 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-Spray. If rose diseases are your problem, use Bayer Advanced™ Disease Control for Roses, Flowers & Shrubs Concentrate.

Control garden weeds – Garden weeds are easiest to control when young. Hoe or pull by hand. Remember the old adage, "leaves of three, let it be," referring to avoiding poison oak? Instead substitute, "leaves of three, spray with Bayer Advanced™ Brush Killer Plus Concentrate." This product also controls other woody vines and briar plants (blackberries, etc.).

Control indoor pests – To control insects like spiders, fleas and ants, Bayer Advanced offers a complete line of home pest solutions, including Bayer Advanced™ Home Pest plus Germ* Killer Indoor and Outdoor Insect Killer Ready-To-Spray. It provides up to 12 months of indoor insect protection**, plus it reduces 99.9% of the germs insects may carry. For easier-than-ever control of roaches, use the Bayer Advanced™ Dual Action Roach Killer Power Pen® Ready-To-Use. It’s easy to use, providing up to 6 months of control with the touch of a button. For more information, visit the Bayer Advanced Indoor Pest Control Web page.

*Staphylococcus aureus and Enterobacter aerogenes on hard, nonporous, nonfood contact surfaces. No residual sanitizer action. Not for primary use as a sanitizer.
**For German cockroaches, black carpenter ants and house crickets on nonporous surfaces.

Control lawn pests – 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 pest control. Click here for more on white grubs and other lawn pests.

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.

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 – Keep landscape plants healthy and vigorous, and flowers blooming on and on, with a quality fertilizer.

Mow – Lawns are growing vigorously. Mow weekly. Set your mower height at the upper end of the mowing range to help develop deeper roots and heat tolerance. Be sure to sharpen the blades and tune up the lawn mower for peak efficiency.

Plant flowers – Plant cool-season annuals like sweet peas, pansies, violas and primrose for fall bloom. You can also start late-blooming perennials like asters, salvias and mums, and spring-blooming perennials like iberis. And don’t forget hardy flowering perennials, such as yarrow and phlox, and hardy bulbs like tulips and daffodils. Protect from insect pests with Bayer Advanced™ . One thorough spray saves you time and money.

Plant lawns – Start cool-season lawns like Kentucky bluegrass and fescues.

Plant vegetables – In southern and low-elevation areas, plant cool-season vegetables like lettuce, carrots and radish for fall harvest. Protect vegetables listed on the label from insect pests with Bayer Advanced™ , Bayer Advanced™ PowerForce® Multi-Insect Killer Concentrate or Bayer Advanced™ . Clean up garden areas to reduce insects and disease as plants die back for the winter.

Protect existing trees and shrubs – Protect valuable trees and shrubs from next year’s insect pests, including aphids, scale and borers. Plant new trees and shrubs, including roses from containers. Feed 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.

Water gardens – Continue to monitor irrigation systems. Fix clogs and broken sprinklers. Adjust spray heads. Apply a fresh layer of organic mulch to conserve moisture. Water more frequently during extreme heat or periods of drought. Be sure to water deeply. What’s the best way to calculate how much water your irrigation system delivers at each sprinkling? Place straight-sided coffee mugs randomly around your beds. After the irrigation cycle is completed, measure how much water has 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 – Make sure sprinklers are operating properly. If you haven’t done so already, adjust timers as weather warms. Water more frequently during warm weather or dry spells, and especially on lawns, be certain to water deeply. 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 has 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.