Cool fall mornings invite you to enjoy a stroll in the garden with a cup of something hot. (Photo: publicdomainpictures.net)

• Top dress warm-season lawns with well-composted manure.
• Sharpen and clean tools for fall pruning.
• Adjust watering schedules to reflect cooler temperatures and shorter days.

Pruning

• Leaf-fall is the time to start pruning - except for apricots and olives, which should have been done in August.

Fertilizing

• Feed cool-weather plants and vegetables to promote fall growth.

Planting

• This is a good time to plant landscape trees and shrubs.
• Continue to plant cool-weather annuals and those that use less water such as classic Coreopsis or hybrids such as ‘Rum Punch'.
• Perennials: Lantana, Penstemon ‘Margarita BOP'.
• Bulbs, corms, tubers: allium, anemone, Babiana.
• Fruits and vegetables: carrots, garlic, lettuce, plant from seed.
• Annuals: Michaelmas Daisy (Aster novi-belgii), snapdragon (Antirrhinum), calendula, chrysanthemum paludosum.
• Trees, shrubs, vines: Cotoneaster.

Enjoy now

• Harvest almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts and pecans when the outer hulls split open and nuts fall to the ground.  Pick up nuts daily or shorten the task by shaking branches or knocking nuts down with a pole. Before shelling, dry nuts in the sun for 2 to 3 days; properly dried nutmeats should snap in two rather than bend. Use shelled nuts right away, or store in the freezer to prevent oxidation (rancidity), mold, and infestation by ants or small worms.
• Fruits and vegetables: jicama, pumpkins, olives.

Things to ponder

• Overnight temperatures in late October occasionally drop below freezing. Frost protection will be needed for houseplants, citrus, avocados and other cold-sensitive plants.
• Do not replace vinca with pansies in the same bed - a soil-borne fungal root rot affects these plants.

Drought tip

• Use drip or soaker hoses for cool-season vegetable gardens, rather than less efficient overhead or furrow irrigation.

As the weather cools in the fall, the last of the year's roses bloom. (Photo: Jeannette Warnert)

Tasks

• Adjust watering systems as weather cools.
• Remove and dispose of any fruit and nuts that cling to the tree.
• To discourage spider mites, spray hedges and shrubs with water to clean them and keep them free of dust.
• Water citrus, being careful not to overwater. Continuously wet soil risks root rot.

Pruning

• Do not apply any treatments to pruning cuts or other wounds because these materials are ineffective (and often detrimental).
• Deadhead and shape rosebushes to promote a final fall bloom.

Fertilizing

• Wait two weeks after planting new flowers and vegetables before feeding with organic or complete fertilizer.
• Add bulb fertilizer to planting hole before planting bulbs.

Planting

• This is the best time to plant shrubs and groundcovers.
• Groundcovers: Carpet bugle (Ajuga), Germander (Teucrium chamaedrys ‘Nanum').
• Perennials: Cyclamen, French tarragon (Artemisia dracunculus), cranesbill (Geranium).
• Before planting winter vegetables, turn a generous amount of compost into the vegetable bed.
• Fruits and vegetables: garlic, onion sets, lettuce, parsley.
• Trees, shrubs, vines: Acacia baileyana, strawberry tree (Arbutus ‘Marina'), hawthorn (Crataegus), sago palm (Cycas), desert willow (Chilopsis linearis).

Enjoy now

• Annuals and perennials: vinca (Catharanthus), chrysanthemum, dianthus, coneflower (Echinacea), globe amaranth (Gomphrena).
• Bulbs, corms, tubers: dahlia.
• Trees, shrubs, vines: pineapple guava (Feijoa), morning glory (Ipomoea), crape myrtle (Lagerstroemia).
• Fruits and vegetables: almonds, lettuce, melon, nectarines, persimmon.
• Fall color: goldenrain tree (Koelreuteria), sweet gum (Liquidambar styraciflua).

Things to ponder

• Do not replace vinca with pansies in the same bed, due to a soil borne fungal root rot that affects these plants.

Chitalpas are decidious trees that bloom for several months during the summer. They can be planted this time of year. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

Tasks

• Repair damaged spots in cool-season lawns (such as tall fescue) by scratching with a rake, seeding and covering with mulch. Keep moist until the new grass seedlings are well established. Warm-season lawns like Bermuda grass will soon be entering their dormant season, so bare patches should be covered with mulch to discourage winter weeds.
• Use spent vegetable plants and summer annuals to start a compost pile.

Pruning

• Divide and thin perennials.
• Sharpen your pruning tools in preparation for fall pruning.

Fertilizing

• To avoid a flush of new growth late in the growing season, do not apply fertilizer to citrus, avocados or other frost?tender plants.

Planting

• If the weather is cool enough, plant spring bulbs and annuals.
• Annuals: calendula, Canterbury bell (Campanula), pansy (Viola).
• Perennials: catmint (Nepeta), dianthus, fortnight lily (Dietes), Lantana.
• Fruits and vegetables: broccoli, cauliflower, parsley.
• Trees, shrubs, vines: barberry (Berberis), redbud (Cercis), fringe tree (Chionanthus), chitalpa.
• Tender leafy vegetables are best planted later in the month, and even then may require daily watering until they are well established.

Enjoy now

• Annuals and perennials: fibrous begonia.
• Bulbs, corms, tubers: cyclamen.
• Trees, shrubs, vines: beautyberry (Callicarpa), bottlebrush (Callistemon), chitalpa.
• Fruits and vegetables: garlic, gourds, grapes, peaches.
• Fall color: Raywood ash (Fraxinus angustifolia), maidenhair (Ginkgo biloba).

Things to ponder

• Cover remaining tomato and pepper plants with a garden blanket to extend the harvest season into November.
• Limit the size of fall vegetable gardens to avoid over-production. Plant only the varieties that you know you will use and enjoy, or that you can share with others.

Be mindful of changing irrigation needs as days get shorter and temperatures begin to drop. Adjust automatic timers accordingly. (Photo: Jeannette Warnert)

“A garden is a thing of beauty and a job forever” ~ Richard Briers

Tasks

• Despite a few last very hot summer days, fall is rapidly approaching with shorter days and cooler nights. Adjust irrigation timers, as your garden requires less water.
• The cooler weather is perfect for working in the garden. Start fall cleanup.
• Deeply water fruit and nut trees. Ideally, mature fruit trees should be irrigated to a depth of 3 feet.

Pruning

• Prune and shape photinia now to avoid removing the attractive new, red foliage. Photinia can be pruned aggressively if the plant has grown too large.
• Finish dividing iris. Replant while conditions remain warm and dry, and share extra rhizomes with friends and neighbors.

Planting

• Bulbs that do not need chilling may be planted beginning this month.
• Plant winter and spring annuals and cool-weather vegetables from cell packs.
• Annuals: snapdragon (Antirrhinum), English daisy (Bellis perennis).
• Perennials: Alstroemeria, Bellflower (campanula), chrysanthemum morifolium, Geum.
• Fruits and vegetables: beets, carrots - plant from seed.
• Trees, shrubs, vines: abelia, acacia, horse chestnut (Aesculus), strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo).

Enjoy now

• Annuals and perennials: alstroemeria, yarrow (Achillea), aster, begonia.
• Bulbs, corms, tubers: canna.
• Trees, shrubs, vines: barberry (Berberis), bougainvillea, butterfly bush (Buddleia davidii).
• Fruits and vegetables: almonds, beans, corn.
• Fall color: maple (Acer), cotoneaster.

Things to ponder

• A thick layer of mulch acts as insulation. If applied while the soil is still warm (55°- 65°) it can help extend the fall growing season.
• In the absence of soaking rains, continue to deep water trees and large shrubs at least once a week.