Shorter days mean less time in the garden; peruse gardening websites, magazines and seed catalogs instead.
Tasks
- Stake newly planted trees in windy areas.
- Clean up debris to eliminate hiding places for pests. Or consider leaving fallen leaves and debris where they are, as many beneficial insects lay their eggs in the leaf litter – it also serves as a natural mulch.
- Irrigate citrus trees at night if frost is expected. Damage to citrus varies with variety and fruit ripeness.
- Continue to irrigate if weather remains dry.
Pruning
- Do not top or prune trees severely in an attempt to avoid raking leaves! Extreme pruning will disfigure trees and shorten their lives.
- Discard diseased wood.
- Leaf fall is the time to start pruning - except for apricot, oleander and olive trees, which should have been pruned in August.
Fertilizing
- Add bulb fertilizer to planting holes before planting bulbs.
Planting
- Fall planting ends this month. The soil will cool rapidly, which will slow root growth.
- If you wish to transplant trees in the fall, it is best to wait until December or January when deciduous and evergreen trees are dormant.
- Perennials: dianthus, euphorbia, kalanchoe, red hot poker (Kniphofia).
- Bulbs, corms, tubers: Snowdrop (Galanthus), snowflake (Leucojum), tulip (Tulipa), Watsonia.
- Fruits and vegetables: bulb and green onions, strawberry.
- Annuals: Love-in-a-mist (Nigella), primrose (Primula), pansy (Viola).
- Trees, shrubs, vines: sedge (Carex), Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus), bay laurel (Laurus).
Enjoy now
- Annuals and perennials: Mexican blue sage (Salvia leucantha), ‘Pink Muhly’ (Muhlenbergia capillaris), pincushion flower (Scabiosa).
- Fruits and vegetables: Asian pears, kale, pomegranate, persimmon, winter squash.
- Trees, shrubs, vines: lantana, viburnum.
- Fall color: Chinese Pistache (Pistacia chinensis), Heavenly Bamboo (Nandina domestica).
Things to ponder
- Calendula petals (fresh or dried) can be used as a substitute for saffron to color rice or flavor soups and stews.
Drought tip
- Landscape watering in many areas is now restricted to one day per week. Check your city’s policy for its winter irrigation schedule.
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Prepared by UC Master Gardener Terry Lewis with information adapted from A Gardener’s Companion for the Central San Joaquin Valley.