Category: monthly garden tasks

To Do in the Garden: November 2024

On By durhammastergardenersIn Accidental Cottage Garden, bulbs, composting, dealing with fall leaves on lawn, drought tolerant plants, Durham NC, earth-friendly garden pots, fall blooming plants, fall gardening, Garden pests, garden tasks, gardening, Gardening calendar, Gardening information, gardening NC, lawn care, lawns, leaves, monthly garden tasks, nesting bees, nesting insects, Perennial, pollinator gardening, pollinators, pruning, soil samples Durham NC extension, soil test, sustainable fall pruning for insects and wildlife, sustainable fall pruning for wildlife, sustanability, Uncategorized

By Gary Crispell, NC State Extension Master GardenerSM volunteer of Durham County

(Left to right) The October surprise, or should we say November surprise, of the ACG is the New England aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae). Do you still have pumpkins and gourds hanging around through Thanksgiving? Each year an estimated 1.3 billion pounds of pumpkins and gourds end up in landfills. Consider adding them to your compost or find a local participating municipality accepting them for donation. See below for more on Earth-friendly ways to deal with your organic decorations post-holiday.1 (Image credit: Dan Mullem CC BY-NC-ND 2.0; Melinda Heigel)

How ‘bout that October? Except for precipitation of any sort, there was something for almost everyone—a little hot, a little cool, and some stereotypical October Piedmont North Carolina, NC State Fair weather. There haven’t been very many State Fairs in my memory without some honest to goodness rain. We’ve been blessed unless, of course, you were trying to grow plants which is sort of what we’re all about here. So, mixed blessings? I mean, as fantastic as this area is, it still ain’t Camelot, Guinevere.


(Left to right) The ACG is still providing blooms this November. The drought-resistant African marigolds prove their hardiness. When planting for fall color, you can count on the New England aster and pink muhly grass to provide late-season interest. (Image credit: Gary Crispell; Jim Robbins CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

The Accidental Cottage Garden (ACG) is too stubborn to give in to the crazy droughty up and down weather. There are some tough characters out there. The toughest of which must be the gallardia (G. pulchella). It doesn’t know quit. The African marigold (Tagetes erecta) and the zinnias (Z. elegans) are also heat and drought tolerant along with the false vervain (Glandularia bipinnatatifida). (Somebody stayed up late naming that one!)


A delightful surprise this year is a lovely New England aster (Symphotrichum novae-angliae). It isn’t as erect as I might be as it was crowded in amongst some other things, and I didn’t become aware of its existence until recently. Next year. Most of the hardy ageratum (Conoclinium coelestinum) have succumbed to the drought and the shorter days. There are a couple of late-to-the-party purple cone flowers (Echinacea purpurea) and a stray black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta). The muhly grass (Muhlenbergia capillaris) are looking a little thin and wispy, but I attribute that to it being the first year in the ground for them. Enough about my garden, let’s talk about what we can do in yours in November.

Lawn Care

Well, if your lawn has survived “No Moisture November” the main task for November is keeping it relatively leaf free. Whatever your remove from the lawn should be composted or used as mulch. The leaves do not belong in the landfill (or the ditch out front, for that matter). Cool season lawns (tall fescue, bluegrass, perennial rye) will still need mowing at the 3½” to 4” height.

The leaf admonishment pertains here, also. If you renovated/overseeded your lawn this fall it will need watering until the drought is done with us. 1” per week minimum applied in two ½” applications is necessary to keep it going.

Fertilizing

Not this month. If your (FREE until the end of November here in NC) SOIL TEST indicates a need to raise the pH, apply the appropriate the proper amount of lime and incorporate it into the soil if possible. Lime doesn’t readily move through the soil and incorporating the lime gets to the roots where it is needed.

Planting: Yes, “Fall is for Planting”

Trees, shrubs, and ground covers planted now will have all winter and early spring to put down roots in order to better withstand next year’s drought periods. (They’re coming. Trust me.) Spring flowering bulbs can still be planted until the end of the month. Year-old asparagus crowns can be transplanted now.

Pruning

So, for years (decades, centuries?) pruning all the perennials back as the blossoms faded (Grandma kept a tidy garden!) has been gardening gospel. Well, that good news is now obsolete news. It seems that solitary native bees and other pollinators lay their eggs on/in and/or nest in those stems for the winter. So, cutting them is detrimental to the pollinator population. Ergo, don’t do it anymore (unless the HOA is going to place a lien on your house for leaving them unpruned). (I don’t suppose the “It’s winter interest”, argument will get you anywhere.) Dead or diseased wood can be removed from trees and shrubs. Make any cuts at the branch collar (flared end) to promote healing of the wound.

Spraying

Any pests still hanging around can be treated with an application of a horticultural oil that will smother adults, eggs, and all phases in between.

Other Fun-filled and/or Fantastic Fall Frolics

Take a leaf hike through somebody’s neighborhood or a state or city park. There is a plethora of opportunities nearby.


Invite friends and neighbors over for an evening around the fire pit. S’mores, hot
chocolate, cider, and donuts are about mandatory. Anything else is optional.

Do anything else you can think of to get yourself outdoors to enjoy these last user-friendly days of 2024.

(Image credit: Pixabay)

May you have Thanksgiving bountiful enough to share.

Notes

1–Eco-friendly ways to dispose of pumpkins and gourds after the holidays: https://extension.illinois.edu/blogs/good-growing/2021-10-08-dealing-pumpkins-after-halloween-debunking-social-media-advice

Resources and Additional Information

Article Short Link: https://wp.me/p2nIr1-5gg

The Budding Orchardist: Summer Solstice Pruning

On By durhammastergardenersIn Briggs Avenue Community Garden, Briggs Avenue Community Garden Teaching Orchard, Durham NC, edibles, fruit in the home garden, fruit production, fruit trees, gardening, Gardening calendar, Gardening information, gardening NC, growing fruit, managing fruit trees, monthly garden tasks, pruning, pruning fruit trees, Uncategorized

By Jeff Kanters, NC State Extension Master GardenerSM volunteer of Durham County

“The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.” –Socrates

This is an installment in our ongoing series “The Budding Orchardist,” where Jeff Kanters, orchard team leader, shares his know-how on growing fruit.

It’s summertime, summertime, sum-sum-summertime as the song goes.

Among the many tasks the orchard team has during the growing season at Briggs Avenue Community Garden’s Teaching Orchard, the most critical for fruit trees is summer pruning. So, let’s explore the when, why, and how of that activity.

When: Proper Pruning Time in the Orchard

Whereas winter pruning is completed in January, summer pruning is completed by the summer solstice or June 21st. We strive to start the pruning by the middle of June to complete the pruning by the 21st of the month.

Why: Purposes of Summer Pruning Fruit Trees

While winter pruning corrects for shape, pruning the trees at peak summer manages the size of the tree by removing much of the accumulated sugars built from photosynthesis that are still held in the canopy of the trees. This is important because starting in July, the trees–having maxed out their summer growth–begin to move the sugars in their canopies down to the roots for storage during the upcoming winter. By reducing the amount of sugars moved to the roots at the right time, we reduce the overall vigor of the tree. With repeated summer pruning, we can keep the tree at a much smaller size for ease of future maintenance and fruit harvest. The orchard team of Master Gardener volunteers aims to maintain the fruit trees to a height of between 8 and 10 feet.

How: Proper Pruning Techniques for Fruit Trees

We prune out roughly two thirds of the current season’s canopy growth. This includes dead or diseased limbs, crossing limbs, limbs growing inward, downward or upward so the center of the tree is opened. We prune to outward facing buds to push a potential limb out from the center of the tree to more sunlight. This is an aggressive pruning, but our aim is to secure the long-term health of the tree. Trees that are overgrown in size are more prone to diseases, limbs breaking from the weight of excess fruit that is smaller and of lesser quality, and a hampered ability to manage and care for the tree. If fruit trees are left unpruned, they may reach heights of 20 to 25 feet tall, well beyond the reach of many homeowners and small orchards.

Summer pruned orchard rows at the Briggs Avenue Community Garden’s Teaching Orchard. Note the manageable size we keep the fruit trees for easy maintenance. (Image credit: Jeff Kanters)

In addition to size, shape matters. We prune our peaches and plums to an open bowl shape and our apples and pears to a central leader or Christmas tree shape. Both keep the inside of the tree open to maximize good air circulation, photosynthesis, healthy and higher quality fruit production, and ease of harvesting.

(Left to right) Summer pruned peach tree showing the open center bowl shape maintained for stone fruit trees and summer pruned pear tree showing the central leader or Christmas tree shape. This promotes is good air-circulation, which reduces disease pressure. (Image credit: Jeff Kanters)

Summer pruning is a necessity to ensure future success in achieving manageable-sized healthy trees that produce delicious fruit. And of course, all this advice applies to all fruit trees whether it be those in a small teaching orchard or one just outside your back door.

Resources and Additional Information

Below you will find references on growing and pruning fruit trees.

Fruit Trees (General)

Fruit Tree Pruning Basics

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