Breaking ground

Winter weeds like chickweed and henbit are easily pulled up by hand or scraped off using a hoe, but some gardeners apply a broad-leaf herbicide.
Winter weeds like chickweed and henbit are easily pulled up by hand or scraped off using a hoe, but some gardeners apply a broad-leaf herbicide.

THIS MONTH

It’s cleanup time in the garden. Cut back perennials, rake your falling leaves and apply a fresh layer of mulch.

Plant spring-flowering bulbs, including crocus, daffodils, tulips and hyacinths and the more unusual bulbs such as ornamental onions (alliums), snowdrops, fritillaries and scillas. Layer the bulbs based on size in the beds for a combination of color next spring.

There is still time to plant winter annuals, including pansies, violas, snapdragons and more. Choose already blooming plants. Lightly fertilize at planting and again on warm days during the winter. Mulch and water.

November is the ideal month to plant a tree. Trees are going dormant, but the soil has some residual heat and ample moisture. Make sure you look up and don’t plant under utility wires or closer than 15 feet from a house.

New narrow-growing varieties of many shade trees are available for small yards.

Pumpkins and gourds give great color through Thanksgiving. Make sure they are blemish free and have a stem attached. A hollowed-out pumpkin makes an interesting vase for fall flowers.

Sasanqua camellias are blooming across the state and are an excellent evergreen shrub for partly shaded gardens. Most nurseries have great availability now. If your garden needs some color in late fall through early winter, consider adding these camellias.

Vegetable gardens are still producing. A small hoop house or covering for the plants can help you produce vegetables year-round. Cool-season vegetables will tolerate light freezes.

Winter weeds have made an early appearance. Henbit, chickweed, dandelions, wild garlic and wild onions, and the dreaded spurweed, are all up and growing. You can spray with a broad-leaf herbicide to kill them before they really take over. Apply only where needed in the lawn, and don’t use on a windy day.

Holiday plants have begun to arrive at nurseries and garden centers. Christmas cactus and cyclamen do well indoors, while the small topiary rosemary and evergreen trees need to remain outdoors.

If you use containers as permanent planters year round outdoors, don’t forget to water, especially before a cold snap. Containers dry out even in cool weather, and moisture in the soil and plants can act as a buffer to prevent damage. The smaller the container, the colder the roots will get. Unglazed or sealed clay pots may not be the best choice for the winter, as they can freeze and thaw, which leads to cracking.

NOVEMBER LESSON

Ornamental grasses are one of the stars of the fall landscape. They come in a wide array of sizes and colors - foliage can be green, variegated, purple or red, while the flowers or plumes can be white, silver, tan, red or pink.

They are drought-tolerant plants.

Once we have a killing frost, these grasses will be dead above the soil line, but the dried plumes and foliage add form, texture and movement to the winter landscape.Some varieties are perennials, which means they will begin growing again next spring, while others are annuals and will need to be replanted.

All perennial ornamental grasses should be cut back in late February to early March, so they can start the season off fresh, but don’t cut them back in the fall or you’ll lose months of beauty.

Perennial grasses include purple muhly grass, with a purplish pink haze of color; feather reed grass; miscanthus; and pampas grass.

Even though annuals won’t survive the winter, they still give you fall and winter interest without spreading, needing dividing or any extra care (except buying a new plant next spring).

Annual grasses include purple fountain grass (and newer varieties like “Fireworks,” a variegated annual grass), ruby grass (melinus), fiber optic grass (isolepsis), and ornamental millet “Purple Majesty.”

If you are planting ornamental grasses, know something about the mature size. There are dwarf grasses that don’t exceed 18 inches in height; but some grasses can grow quite tall and wide.

Division of grasses is doable in the spring, but since they have an extensive root system, it can be a tough job.

Plant ornamental grasses in full sun and in a well drained soil. Once established, they will pretty much take care of themselves.

HomeStyle, Pages 35 on 11/03/2012

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