Here in South Florida we dodged a bullet by having the hurricane track jog at the last moment further to the east leaving us to deal with some landscape & tree clean up but no significant damage structure wise. This process of preparing for hurricanes reminds us that hurricanes are an acts of nature were we must be vigilant in fully preparing for worse and hoping for the best.
November is when we begin to notice a drop in average daily temperature and humidity. Its at this time we should begin removing our spring/summer annuals & prepare our flower beds with fall colors with cool season plants. the following is a good checklist to follow in preparing our gardens:
Turn off irrigation system and water as needed. Plants & grass need less water in cooler temperatures, too much water at this time of year will cause a fungus (brown & large patches). This should be something that should be monitored till May. Treatments for this is difficult so proper horticultural practices is key.
- What to do this month in the garden:
- Turn off irrigation system and water as needed.
- Take advantage of the cooler temperatures by applying horticultural oil sprays to control scale insects.
- Trimm back, divide & replant overgrown perennials and bulbs so they may establish before the coolest weather arrives.
- This is the last month that any major pruning to overgrown landscaping should occur to prevent new growth damage from cooler weather.
- Planting to do list:
- Mix in a new potting soil blend to the existing areas where new seasonal colors will be planted. Some examples include sunpatiens, daisy, begonia and geranium.
- Bulbs to plant this month include amaryllis, crinum and the various elephant ears. Herbs can continued to be planted from seed or by plants.
- A wide variety of herbs like cooler, drier weather, include dill, fennel, cilantro sage, thyme and parsley.
- There are lots of choices for the home vegetable grower this month. They include carrots, green onion, broccoli, kale and tomatoes.
Until next month Happy Gardening!
If you need help regarding your landscaping, we at Garden Services are fully licensed & insured to handle all your irrigation, landscaping, lawn maintenance and tree service needs whether it’s a residential, commercial landscaping or homeowner association property. If you ever have any comments or questions, please don’t hesitate to call or email me and I’ll be happy to answer any questions that you might have. Special thanks again to UF/IFAS extension office for providing some information to this article. Until next month Happy Gardening!