Preparing Your Pet-Friendly Garden for Fall

Now is the time to harvest cold crops for fall.  Many pet friendly crops, such as peas, broccoli, beets, spinach and carrots can actually be used in recipes for your pooch!  And an added benefit to fall planting is that peas actually “fix” nitrogen into the soil for next spring planting.  Keep in mind, when sowing seeds in the fall, plant them almost twice as deep as spring- planted crops.  This keeps them cool and also from drying out before they germinate.

Another way to prepare your vegetable garden for the fall is to make sure your pooch cannot access your compost bin.  Many dogs get into the bins and eat moldy foods which can make them sick.  Also, make sure to turn your bin regularly.  Now that we are getting into a cooler season, it’s best to turn more often which helps with decomposition.

Since deciduous plants will soon be dropping their leaves, you might need to fence off areas your dog runs into for squirrel patrol, greeting the neighbors or other areas he accesses at a high speed.  Defoliated shrubs can poke their faces and cause facial lacerations.

This time of year dogs can get foxtails in their fur which can migrate throughout their body and cause serious injuries.  Some dogs need surgery to remove them from vital organs such as their lungs.  Eradicate them if you have them in your backyard and beware of them when walking your dog.  Always check your pooches’ coat, between his nails and in his ears after a walk if he’s been playing in an open space area.

If you have plum, cherry, apricot or apple trees, make sure the fruits are picked up off the ground. Not only can old, rotting food make your pooch sick but the pits are toxic to our dogs.

If you haven’t had a chance to do any landscaping in your backyard for your pooch this winter, look into buying erosion control blankets.  They are easy to install, economical but best of all, they prevent mud from getting into your house.  Many dogs are triggered by seams, however, and they might end up “playing” with the blanket.  If this is the case, install extra fabric pins down the seam to ensure they cannot tear out the blanket.

Guest Blogger: Elizabeth Bublitz

Elizabeth is the owner of Petfriendly Landscapes, Inc., a complete pet friendly landscape company that creates landscape designs for all fifty states and internationally.  Elizabeth is the author of, “Pawfriendly Landscapes – How to Share the Turf When Your Backyard Belongs to Barney.”