November 2021 Gardening Tips

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What to SHOP for . . .

 

• Annuals - Calendula, Bellis perennis, Iceland Poppies, Primrose (used as annual).
• Perennials/Shrubs - Chrysanthemums, Japanese anemone, Penstemon ‘Midnight’, Hydrangea quercifolia (great fall color), Lavender.
• Evergreen Shrubs (frost hardy) -  Myrsine africana (African Boxwood)
  Myrtle, Elaeagnus, Escallonia.
• Bulbs - Alliums (ornamental onions), Scilla peruviana, Freesia.
• Veggies:  Garlic (plant first part of month), Spinach, Onion sets.
• Seeds - Sweet Peas, Larkspur, Wildflowers.

Tasks To Do

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• Bulbs - The bulbs purchased last month can be planted this month. When buying bulbs this month be extra careful to purchase the best looking bulbs that are heavy for their size as bulbs may be pretty picked over by now. If you love garlic from your summer garden plant the cloves now.
• Sweet Peas - These darlings of the garden are cool-season annuals that are planted in winter. Seeds can be sown or six-pack size plants can be planted starting this month through February. Protect from cutworms, earwigs, snails, slugs and other pests. Sweet peas prefer yummy, well draining soil. Provide trellis' for their tendrils to attach to (the tendrils attach best to pencil sized or smaller wire trellis). At the end of the season,  Sweet Pea vines can be hard to remove from chicken wire.
• Pruning - Continue to deadhead (remove the spent flowers and the flower stem) Pansies and Iceland Poppies to encourage the plants to bloom all winter here in Zone 9.  Elaeagnus can be tip pruned to encourage branching to push below the cut which creates a fuller stem. 
• Pest Management - Snails, slugs, earwigs, and sowbugs want the tender plants in the garden. Continue to bait or hand-pick and put in hot, soapy water. Also, clean up leaves from planting beds that have winter bloomers and bulbs as these pests hide in the leaves. If you have a deciduous plant that gets powdery mildew or other fungus every year, even though it is planted in the best environment, plan to spray while the plant is dormant. Remember to spray the entire plant to saturation and to spray the soil under and around the plant too. One spray is usually not enough so plan to spray twice or even three different times while the plant is leafless.
• Primroses and Cyclamen - Each of these plants can grow in full sun during the winter but not once temperatures heat up in spring. The good news is they each transplant well so you can plan to move them to dappled shade for the hot part of the year.
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