A week-by-week plan for your garden

Week 1 (Sept 1–7): Transition & Early Harvest

Vegetables & Herbs
- Harvest tomatoes, peppers, beans, cucumbers, and zucchini frequently to encourage continued production.
- Begin pulling out plants showing heavy disease (blight on tomatoes, mildew on squash). Bag and dispose — don’t compost.
- Sow fast-growing cool crops (radish, arugula, mustard greens).
- Start fall herb cuttings of basil, oregano, and thyme to root indoors for winter use.
Flowers
- Deadhead perennials and annuals for more late color.
- Start transplanting or dividing perennials like irises, daylilies, and hostas (still warm soil encourages root establishment).
Lawn & Yard
- Mow regularly; keep at summer height (about 3”).
- Discuss mulching mower availability with local landscaping companies to manage leaves in place, or start raking early fallen leaves to prevent smothering the grass.
Extra tip: Check frost forecast for your zone (most Northeast areas see first frost between late Sept–mid Oct).

Week 2 (Sept 8–14): Planting & Soil Care

Vegetables & Herbs
- Plant spinach, kale, collards, and lettuce for a fall harvest.
- Thin seedlings to improve airflow and reduce disease.
- Sow cover crops like crimson clover, oats, or winter rye in empty beds.
Flowers
- Plant spring bulbs (daffodils, hyacinths, tulips) before the soil cools too much. This varies by area; northern areas begin in September, and southern New England can often still plant bulbs in November.
- Add chrysanthemums, asters, and ornamental kale for fresh fall color.
Lawn & Yard
- Choose your leaf path: mulch mowing to feed your lawn with leaves in place, or
- Make a plan for clearing leaves and adding to compost.
Extra tip: Keep watering — September often brings drier days even if temps feel cooler.
One last hurrah: Perennials, shrubs, and trees are on sale at every nursery to clear stock for the season. Take a look for anything you’ve been eying for the season while you shop for bulbs and tools on sale.

Week 3 (Sept 15–21): Divide, Mulch & Prepare

Vegetables & Herbs
- Harvest winter squash (acorn, butternut, pumpkins) once the rinds are hard and the vines die back. Cure in a warm, dry spot.
- Pull out finished summer crops and layer beds with compost + mulch to rest over winter.
Flowers
- Continue dividing perennials; replant divisions promptly.
- Cut back annuals that are spent and replace them with fall flowers.
- Mulch perennial beds lightly to regulate soil temperatures as nights cool.
- For tender bulbs, watch forecasts closely in northern NE (Maine, VT, NH zones 4–5). If an early frost hits, be ready to cut back and dig within 2–3 days.
Shrubs & Trees
- Plant evergreens and deciduous shrubs/trees; early fall is the best time for root growth.
- Water deeply after planting to help roots establish.
General Prep
- Begin cleaning clay pots and storing garden décor that could crack in frost.
- Spend an afternoon inspecting and cleaning pots. It’s a good idea to put any that had fungus issues aside to truly scrub or treat with anti-fungal.
- Sharpen and oil pruners, shears, and shovels. Make a note of any tool replacement needed, or any that should be purchased for the next season, as they might still be on sale, or soon going on sale.

Week 4 (Sept 22–30): Frost Prep & Storage

Vegetables & Herbs
- Cover tender crops with row covers or cloches if frost is forecast.
- Harvest green tomatoes — ripen indoors in paper bags if frost threatens.
- Dig and store tender bulbs (gladiolus, dahlias, cannas) before hard frost.
Flowers
- Plant last of the spring bulbs in the coldest hardiness zones. In zones 6-7, bulbs can still be planted throughout October as long as the ground is not frozen.
- Collect seeds from annuals (zinnias, marigolds, cosmos) for next year.
- For tender bulbs like dahlias: In southern NE, zones 6 -7 bulbs can usually stay in until early–mid October. Begin prepping storage area (boxes with peat moss, vermiculite, or newspaper).
Lawn & Yard
- Lower mower blade to about 2.5” for the last mow before winter.
- Leaf plan – if mulching, the first mulching mow should take place. Otherwise, try to tackle ranking weekly to stay ahead — compost healthy ones, bag any diseased.
Shrubs & Trees
- Mulch young trees and shrubs to protect roots from winter freeze/thaw cycles.
- Wrap or protect tender evergreens if deer or wind damage is common.
General Prep
- Bring in houseplants before temperatures consistently dip below 50°F.
- Store hoses, drain irrigation lines, and shut off outdoor water sources before the first freeze.
- As the leaves start to look more sparse, make a note of places where beneficial natives could be added in the spring, from berries to native perennials. You can make a difference with just one plant for pollinators and birds.

Extra Helpful Notes

Average First Frost:
- Northern NE (Maine, NH, VT): Sept 20–Oct 5
- Central NE (MA, upstate NY): Sept 25–Oct 10
- Southern NE (CT, RI, southern NY): Oct 5–15
Composting Tip: Layer green waste (veggie scraps, grass) with brown waste (dried leaves, shredded paper) for the best balance.
Wildlife Gardening: Leave some seedheads (echinacea, rudbeckia) for birds, and don’t cut everything down — pollinators benefit from hollow stems and leaf cover in winter.
Nuts and berries: try to leave them in place for wildlife, especially birds.