Wet weather expected to continue; make most of damp soil
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| All those beautiful leaves will be on the ground soon. (Photo: Kathy Morrison) |
Keep your umbrella handy! After showers this weekend, rain likely will be back soon.
According to the National Weather Service , Sacramento can expect a quarter inch of rain on Tuesday, followed by another quarter inch on Thursday, with possible showers and drizzle in between.
The cloud cover that goes with this storm system will keep temperatures cool, but not freezing. Highs this week are expected to reach only the low 60s, but overnight lows will hover around 50 degrees – still relatively warm for November.
The good news: This moisture will soften the ground – great for planting!
* Turn off the sprinklers during this rainy week.
* Check soil moisture to make sure that precipitation is actually soaking in. Provide extra irrigation as needed.
* Rake and compost leaves. Don't let leaves pile up in the gutter and block drainage.
* Save dry stalks and seedpods from poppies and coneflowers for fall bouquets and holiday decorating.
* Give your azaleas, gardenias and camellias a boost with chelated iron.
* Prune non-flowering trees and shrubs while dormant.
* Keep planting bulbs to spread out your spring bloom.
* This is also a good time to seed wildflowers and plant such spring bloomers as sweet pea, sweet alyssum and bachelor buttons.
* Now is the best time to plant most trees and shrubs. This gives them plenty of time for root development before spring growth. They also benefit from fall and winter rains.
* Set out cool-weather annuals such as pansies and snapdragons.
* Lettuce, cabbage, broccoli, chard, kale and other winter greens also can be planted now.
* Plant garlic and onions.
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| Chard and other cool-season favorites can be planted now. |
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Garden Checklist for week of April 21
This week there’s plenty to keep gardeners busy. With no rain in the immediate forecast, remember to irrigate any new transplants.
* Weed, weed, weed! Get them before they flower and go to seed.
* April is the last chance to plant citrus trees such as dwarf orange, lemon and kumquat. These trees also look good in landscaping and provide fresh fruit in winter.
* Smell orange blossoms? Feed citrus trees with a low dose of balanced fertilizer (such as 10-10-10) during bloom to help set fruit. Keep an eye out for ants.
* Apply slow-release fertilizer to the lawn.
* Thoroughly clean debris from the bottom of outdoor ponds or fountains.
* Spring brings a flush of rapid growth, and that means your garden is really hungry. Feed shrubs and trees with a slow-release fertilizer. Or mulch with a 1-inch layer of compost.
* Azaleas and camellias looking a little yellow? If leaves are turning yellow between the veins, give them a boost with chelated iron.
* Trim dead flowers but not leaves from spring-flowering bulbs such as daffodils and tulips. Those leaves gather energy to create next year's flowers. Also, give the bulbs a fertilizer boost after bloom.
* Pinch chrysanthemums back to 12 inches for fall flowers. Cut old stems to the ground.
* Mulch around plants to conserve moisture and control weeds.
* From seed, plant beans, beets, cantaloupes, carrots, corn, cucumbers, melons, radishes and squash.
* Plant onion sets.
* In the flower garden, plant seeds for asters, cosmos, celosia, marigolds, salvia, sunflowers and zinnias.
* Transplant petunias, zinnias, geraniums and other summer bloomers.
* Plant perennials and dahlia tubers for summer bloom.
* Mid to late April is about the last chance to plant summer bulbs, such as gladiolus and tuberous begonias.
* Transplant lettuce seedlings. Choose varieties that mature quickly such as loose leaf.
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