November in the Mid-South garden

Hi, Mid-South gardeners. Although summer is over, November can still be a busy time in the garden.

This month is the time to enjoy harvests from late summer plantings of turnips, greens, cabbage, and other veggies.

Now is the time to plant flower bulbs such as daffodils and tulips, and divide perennials such as daylilies and iris. I planted tulip and hyacinth bulbs last week. Tulips don't seem to last long here, but I keep planting them, ever hopeful.

Plant pansies, and those in the lowest areas of the region can still plant snapdragons, dianthus, and calendula. Those folks can still plant spinach and turnips, too.

Collect plenty of leaves for your compost piles.

Dig up a few herbs from your garden and place in pots in your kitchen window to use in winter cooking.

Be ready to throw a blanket over your tomato cages to protect them from the first frosts. (I tried throwing a bedspread over my trellis when our first freeze was forecast and it didn't work - the cherry tomatoes turned to mush on blackened vines, but apparently it does offer protection from frosts.)

Put out bird feeders.

Does anyone else have tasks to add to this list?

ander217 wrote:
Does anyone else have tasks to add to this list?

There is a good list here Old Farmers Almanac

From a sweet little blog called a way to garden November garden chores

That's a lovely blog, Camprn. Thanks for the heads-up.

It had good info, although based in New York the schedule wouldn't be the same as the Mid-South.

Oops, sorry, I put it here because you had asked what other tasks to add to the November garden chores list. I apologize.

Oh, no apologies, please, Camprn. It's no big deal, I just wanted to point out that any Mid-South gardeners reading it would need to allow for a time difference. It's a great site and I'm glad you posted it.

Camprn,

That lady with the blog in NY said she planted spinach in November.

My question(s) to everyone here:

Can I really plant it now in Central Va?

Will it grow to harvestable size during the winter?

I sure hope so. I didn't plant nearly enough of spinach or kale.

Betty

Betty, if I read her blog entry correctly, she plants the seed in November and then covers it with row covers, but it doesn't actually start growing until April. She said she gets a head-start on growth in spring because it is already planted and starts growing when I assume it may still be too cold to work her soil in NY for early spring direct-seeding.

I don't have that problem here in the Upper South. I usually direct-seed my spinach in mid-to-late March or early April. Sometimes a long bout of rain may make the soil unworkable as early as I'd like, but I always get it into the ground in plenty of time to grow off before hot weather arrives. Even that ceases to be much of a problem when growing in Mel's Mix.

Some people extend the growing season with lettuce and spinach by planting them in cold frames, but I've never tried it.

Ander,

DH has been wanting to try cold frames for a while now. I think I will encourage him to try a few over our 4x4s next spring to see if it helps us get an earlier start and how well it helps extend the planting/growing/harvesting next fall.

Oh, I have sooo many dreams! I'm like a kid with a new toy when it comes to SFGing! lol

Betty

bettyd_z7_va wrote:Camprn, That lady with the blog in NY said she planted spinach in November. My question(s) to everyone here: Can I really plant it now in Central Va? Will it grow to harvestable size during the winter? I sure hope so. I didn't plant nearly enough of spinach or kale. Betty

I'm not sure but I think if you used row cover you could get baby spinach maybe by Christmas time. I found this bit of info about planting spinach on another forum.

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