Is it a good idea to go ahead and give the plants one last feeding since Fall-like temps are arriving here? (Zone 9a) We shouldn't see any freezing or near-freezing temps for at least another 45-60 days.
I would think that as long as the plants are still growing, they still need to "eat". so my OPINION is that they should be fed as long as they can use the fertilizer this fall. Even those slow release fertilizers can still be beneficial. I still like the traditional water soluble kind, they seem to work better, but a good dressing of compost would help also.
Cheryl, feed your annuals, but not your perennials. With the summer we've had, the perennials are stressed anyway, and feeding them is going to make them put out new tender growth that won't have time to harden off before cold (well, cold for us!)weather sets in. Carolyn's suggestion for compost will suffice for your perennials. Compost will also serve as a light mulch to protect roots.
I do not fertilize perennials in the Fall. This does depend on what zone you are in. In my zone 5, they are going dormant, so I don't think they need food. Usually they get the nutrients they need from the soil. I would however say that a top dressing with compost is a good thing to do.
Jane and Kay are correct, Don't feed the perennials, I was only thinking of the annuals and vegetables. Sorry to not have mentioned that. I was thinking how much better my planter on the stoop finally looked after I gave it a huge dose of fertilizer. the plants in containers and in the garden use up all the nutrients available and still need to "eat" to produce flowers and fruit. But the perennials need to be winding down, not growing up.
Thanks everyone. Compost it will be for the perennials. With the dry and hot summer we had, I just didn't know whether or not to give them a little something now that they are trying to produce again since we've had cooler temps.
