Establishing a First Fall Garden

Fall is on its way, even though daytime temps continue to soar. Before we know it, Halloween and Harvest season will be here, bringing with a feast of activities. I've decided to take advantage of this lull time and work on establishing a fall garden.

Although I live in an apartment, we have this lovely little courtyard in the front. Several residents have claimed adjoining spaces and created their own gardens. Since we've been here, there has been a bleak spot near ours- about two by three in space- begging for someone to come and plant flowers and colorful plants. In the spring, I tried my hand at container gardening (without reading up on how to do it) and failed miserably (I bet my neighbors see me as a naive and pitiful gardener!).

This fall, I want to fill that space with lovely flowers. After reading up on several gardening books and resources, I have narrowed down my selection to the following contenders. All are supposed to be easy to care for and grow.

• Mums- The fall staple of course!
  
• Feverfew- a medium white flower
• Pot Marigold- a medium yellow flower
• Candytuff- a small white bloom
• Crocus- a small, blue/purple bloom

These flowers are known to be fall season hardy, with some, like the crocus, surviving several frosts. There are actually quite a few fall flowers in my zone.

Next week I will check out a local nursery for professional advice and opinion, as well as to purchase the flowers. My chosen spot has partial shade and sun (with it leaning more on the shady side), so I hope these flowers will work well.

Stayed tuned for pictures and more posts about fall gardening!