Sometime last week, the season turned. The heat broke with a dramatic rainstorm, and although it returned to 80 degree days after, it was clear summer was at its end. The air just smelled different, and I could see the local squirrels’ behavior changing into prep mode.
I can get sad about having to deconstruct the summer garden, but then I distract myself with all the prep for fall, the hopefulness of the seeds I’m planting now, and harvesting and processing everything that’s coming out of the beds. I take extensive notes of what worked and didn’t; sometimes I sketch reminders for next year in my garden journal.
Then I remember the end of summer sales, and the dopamine that one only gets from buying plants kicks in.
Rescue all the nursery sad plants
I’ve written before about the beauty of the sad plant shelf at your local nursery or store, and now is when the picking is perfect. Nurseries have to consolidate as they shift into winter mode. The key is looking for those deals and ignoring how sad the plants look. If they’re not dead, they’re going to recover for next year, and when you plonk them into the ground now, how they look won’t matter much as they’d all defoliate soon anyway.
Don’t be afraid to ask for a deeper discount if you sweep up multiples—many of these plants are bound for the compost bin. That includes your grocer’s nursery section, chain stores, even Home Depot and Lowe’s. A manager has a lot of leeway on marking down products.
Look for those end-of-season sales
All the major garden e-tailers have end-of-season sales on seeds and equipment. Now is a great time to pick up infrastructure pieces for your garden like trellises, planting tools and the big one for our new climate: season extending gear. Agribond, which insulates your low tunnels, or shade cloth, or basic low tunnel supplies. Grab seed-starting supplies if they go on sale.
Your nursery is also likely cleaning house, meaning that now is a great time for deals on planters, gardening books and fertilizers. Call and ask.
Restock your seeds
In just a few months, next year’s seed catalogs will be out, and there will be the same rush that’s happened every year since 2020. Prepare by getting your restocks out of the way now, when seeds are on sale.
First, do not overlook the grocery or big box seed stands. Those seeds have to go, and they’re on deep discount right now. While they don’t offer the widest variety, they’re an absolute go-to for some staples: carrots, bunching onions, radishes, sunflowers, and a number of flowers like nasturtiums, marigolds, pansies, and petunias. All the above will be fine for next year’s crops (allium seeds like onions, often thought to be only good for a year, often last longer and germinate so fast it’s worth checking).
Now go through the stack of empty seed packets you’ve been holding onto and surf the seed sales on your favorite seed sites, like Johnny’s.
Check your neighborhood apps
As everyone starts to clean up for fall, they are often getting rid of a lot of items that are perfectly usable but are a bear to store, like tomato cages, planters, hoses, trellises, and all sorts of garden ephemera—not to mention plants. This week I’ve seen people offering all sorts of perennials for grabs as they split what they have in the garden. Free is always better.