November Gardening Tips: Prepare for Frost and Think About Spring!
By Alicia Wheeler - Gardenscape Sales Team/RHS Level 3 Horticulturalist
November has arrived, and the chilly days we’ve experienced has brought a noticeable drop in temperature. The last remnants of this year’s autumn foliage are beginning to fall, with leaves scattered across the garden. As the colourful foliage fades, attention shifts to the garden’s winter framework, with colourful stems like dogwood taking the spotlight. Now is the time to wrap up warm and enjoy the last of autumn outdoors before winter settles.
Now is the time to plant your tulip bulbs for next year’s displays. Tulips are a spring staple, with a wide variety of colours, flower shapes, and heights to choose from. They thrive in full sun or light shade and should be planted two to three times the height of the bulb. You can plant them close together for a dense display or space them further apart to mix in with other planting. A useful tip is to add a little bone meal to the bottom of the planting hole to encourage root growth. Then all that’s left to do is wait until next spring for the blooms to appear!
When mowing the lawn, choose dry, frost-free conditions and raise the cutting height to help prevent damage to the grass during the colder months. You can also still apply Autumn/Winter fertiliser for a nutrient boost, helping it maintain healthy roots and health over winter.
With the first frost just around the corner, now is a good time to think about your tender plants and pots. Move tender plants to a warmer location, such as a green house or indoors, until next spring. Pots containing plants hardy enough to remain outside can be raised off the ground to help prevent waterlogging. Frost-tender plants growing in the ground can be protected by using cloches or being wrapped in horticultural fleece. Mulching the ground is also essential for helping retain warmth and protect plant roots as temperatures drop.
As the leaves begin to carpet the lawns, it’s time to get the rake out and tidy up. Any leaves that aren’t added to your compost bin can be left in a pile to provide hedgehogs with a place to hibernate. As the weather gets colder, food becomes more limited for birds. Putting out bird food and fresh water will help our little garden friends throughout winter.
As deciduous plants become dormant at this time of the year, November is the perfect time to plant bare root plants. There’s a wide variety that can be planted now, from roses and agapanthus to fruit trees and bushes. Planting is straightforward, simply fill the planting hole with a good quality topsoil such as TS1 20 mm Landscaping Soil, water thoroughly, and top the area with a good layer of bark or compost mulch. The roots will establish over winter, and, all going well you should see leafy growth next spring.
Lastly, don’t forget to order your logs, kindling, and rock salt before winter settles in!
Enjoy your November gardening!