NOVEMBER

• Finish garden cleanup and weeding; leave some seeds on flowers for birds.
• Mulch roses but don't prune severely now.
• Move container plants into winter shelter

Veggies year-round:

• Plant out onion transplants sown in July; they'll be ready next June.
• Spread dolomite lime over beds that haven't received lim or wood ashes for the past two years.
• Pile fall leaves over unplanted areas and over any root crops saved for winter eating.

Lawn care:

• Late in the month, apply winter fertilization, which is vital to maintain turf in good health.
• Mow when ground condition permits. Grass grows slowly throughout the winter.

Additional gardening tips from Washington State Universtiy Cooperative Extension publication "The Gardener."

• Fertilize your lawn at the end of November to help retain a deep green color through the winter. Use a fertilizer with approximately a 3-1-2 (N-P-K) ratio. For late fall use, choose a fertilizer that contains mainly a slow-release form of nitrogen. Highly soluble nitrogen can leach away rapidly, not only being lost to the grass, but possibly contributing to groundwater pollution.

• If moss is a problem in your lawn, you may apply an iron compound to kill it. But unless you correct the excess shade, soil compaction, or poor fertilizer practices, it will return. Contrary to popular belief, lime will not control moss, though it may benefit your grass.

• This is a good time to take cuttings from rhododendron, camellia, photinia, and laurel (see PNW 152, Propagating Deciduous and Evergreen Shrubs, Trees, and Vines with Cuttings).

• Garlic, onion sets, and peas can still be planted.

• Don't remove the foliage and stems from rhubarb, asparagus, and artichokes if they are still green and healthy. Wait until the really cold weather comes.

• Rhubarb and artichoke roots can be planted if available in nurseries.

• Blueberries, currants, gooseberries, grapes, kiwis, and caneberries can be planted now and through the winter so long as the soil is not frozen.

• Cut raspberry canes to 5 feet and tie them to a trellis.

• Cut off the top sections of everbearing raspberry canes that fruited this fall. The lower parts of the canes will fruit again next summer.

• It is best to withhold fertilizer from houseplants from mid-November to mid-March unless they are actively growing.

George Pinyuh, WSU Extension Agent--Retired