Sacramento Digs Gardening: Dig In: Garden Checklist for week of Sept. 30

October is prime time for planting in Sacramento

Cheery violas can be planted now, as well as other cool-weather bedding annuals. (Photo: Kathy Morrison)

Feel that wonderful cool air? That's October weather; warm enough to keep the soil cozy, yet with a refreshing breeze. And on the horizon? Possible rain.

It makes for ideal planting conditions for a wide range of plants, from cool-weather annuals and vegetables to major trees and shrubs.

If you're thinking about a landscape make-over or just a few minor tweaks, this is the time to do it. October is a sweet spot for garden success.

Why? Ideal weather for transplanting before winter. In Sacramento, the average high temperature for October is 78 degrees with an average low of 50. Days can soar back into the triple-digits, but only briefly. Then, they settle back quickly into fall.

October also starts the "rainy season," averaging just below an inch. Historically, that precipitation comes in small polite doses, from storms on their way east. That helps new transplants settle in nicely into that still-warm and comfortable soil.

All those factors help plants become established quicker with less stress -- for them and gardeners.
Here are suggestions for a very busy garden week and month:

* Undoubtedly, October is the best month to plant perennials in our area. Add a little well-aged compost and bone meal to the planting hole, but hold off on other fertilizers until spring.
Because rain will not be enough this month, keep the transplants well-watered (but not wet) for the first month as they become settled.

* It's also perfect conditions for transplanting many California natives. It gives them that opportunity to put down roots and get established over winter.

* Now also is the time to plant seeds for many flowers directly into the garden, including cornflower, nasturtium, nigella, poppy, portulaca, sweet pea and stocks.

* Plant spring bulbs. Daffodils and Dutch iris can go directly in the ground without pre-chilling.

* Set out cool-weather bedding plants, including calendula, pansy, snapdragon, primrose and viola.

* Reseed and feed the lawn. Work on bare spots.

* Or consider taking lawn out to replace with more water-efficient landscaping.

*In the vegetable garden, plant seeds for radishes, bok choy, mustard, spinach and peas. Plant garlic and onions.

*Transplant cabbage, broccoli, kale, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower and lettuce seedlings.

CHECKLIST FOR THE WEEK

Your weekly checklist of activities in the garden.

Keywords:

cool-season annuals seeds Sacramento garden chores lawn fall planting gardening vegetables native plants rainfall bulbs perennials

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Food in My Back Yard Series

May 6: Maintain soil moisture with mulch for garden success

April 29: What's (already) wrong with my tomato plants?

April 22: Should you stock up on fertilizer? (Yes!)

April 15: Grow culinary herbs in containers

April 8: When to plant summer vegetables

April 1: Don't be fooled by these garden myths

March 25: Fertilizer tips: How to 'feed' your vegetables for healthy growth

March 18: Time to give vegetable seedlings some more space

March 11: Ways to win the fight against weeds

March 4: Potatoes from the garden

Feb. 25: Plant a fruit tree now -- for later

Feb. 18: How to squeeze more food into less space

Feb. 11: When to plant? Consider staggering your transplants

Feb. 4: Starting in seed starting

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Garden Checklist for week of May 11

Make the most of the lower temperatures early in the week. We’ll be back in the 80s by Thursday.

* Plant, plant, plant! It’s prime planting season in the Sacramento area. Time to set out those tomato transplants along with peppers and eggplants. Pinch off any flowers on new transplants to make them concentrate on establishing roots instead of setting premature fruit.

* Direct-seed melons, cucumbers, summer squash, corn, radishes, pumpkins and annual herbs such as basil.

* Harvest cabbage, lettuce, peas and green onions.

* In the flower garden, direct-seed sunflowers, cosmos, salvia, zinnias, marigolds, celosia and asters. (You also can transplant seedlings for many of the same flowers.)

* Plant dahlia tubers.

* Transplant petunias, marigolds and perennial flowers such as astilbe, columbine, coneflowers, coreopsis, dahlias, rudbeckia and verbena.

* Keep an eye out for slugs, snails, earwigs and aphids that want to dine on tender new growth.

* Feed summer bloomers with a balanced fertilizer.

* For continued bloom, cut off spent flowers on roses as well as other flowering plants.

* Add mulch to the garden to maintain moisture. Mulch also cuts down on weeds. But don’t let it mound around the stems or trunks of trees or shrubs. Leave about a 6-inch-to-1-foot circle to avoid crown rot or other problems.

* Remember to weed! Pull those nasties before they set seed.

* Water early in the day and keep seedlings evenly moist.

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