November Gardening Tips

As cooler weather settles into the Big Bend area, November offers Tallahassee gardeners the perfect opportunity to refresh their landscapes and prepare for the season ahead. With mild temperatures and occasional cool snaps, it’s a great time to plant, prune, and protect your garden for a vibrant winter and an early start to spring.

Planting Recommendations

Vegetables:
Cool-season crops thrive this time of year. Broccoli, kale, carrots, and lettuce are excellent choices for November planting. You can also add cabbage, beets, spinach, and English peas for a diverse, productive garden.

Flowers:
Brighten up your beds and containers with cheerful cool-weather annuals like pansies, violas, and snapdragons. These blooms bring vibrant color even through chilly mornings. November is also the ideal month to plant spring-blooming bulbs such as daffodils and tulips for a stunning early-season display next year.

Herbs:
Add flavor to your kitchen and beauty to your garden with hardy herbs like thyme, sage, parsley, and cilantro. These herbs love the cooler temperatures and can provide fresh ingredients all winter long.

Maintenance Tasks

Watering:
With cooler temperatures reducing evaporation, you can ease back on watering. Apply a layer of mulch to help retain soil moisture and regulate root temperatures.

Fertilizing:
Feed your garden with a balanced fertilizer or organic compost to encourage healthy growth—especially for vegetables and blooming annuals. We recommend Gardener’s Special 11-15-11, or if you’re looking to go organic Espoma’s Garden Tone for veggies and Flower Tone for your flower beds.

Pest Control:
Pests don’t take a holiday! Keep an eye out for aphids, cutworms, and other cool-season invaders. Whenever possible, use organic or natural pest control methods to protect beneficial insects and the environment.

General Tips

Pruning:
Prune non-spring flowering shrubs to shape them and promote healthy growth. Avoid pruning spring bloomers until after they flower.

Cold Protection:
Be ready to cover tender plants with frost cloth or move containers indoors when frost is forecasted. Water thoroughly at the base of the plant before the freeze. Even a light frost can damage delicate foliage.

Lawn Care:
Continue to monitor your lawn for disease and maintain proper mowing and cultural practices. Cooler weather is also a good time to overseed bare areas if needed.

By following these November gardening tips, you’ll help your landscape stay healthy, colorful, and ready for the cooler months ahead. Stop by Esposito Garden Center for fresh seasonal plants, fertilizers, and expert advice to make your fall garden thrive!