April puts spotlight on America's growing pastime
Weekend events range from Natomas to Orangevale to Placerville
Famous feng shui oasis in Davis hosts tour on Sunday
Find our recipes for seasonal fruit and vegetables all in one place
'In the Garden' is theme for annual show and sale at Shepard Center
Delicious seasonal recipes from your garden.
NEW Celery adds crunch; mint lends an herbal note
Spring-like days finally arrive (but still too cold for happy tomatoes)
As Sacramento weather finally feels like spring, expect rapid changes in your garden.
Open Garden Day this month is on a midweek morning
Get advice from master gardeners; plant sales coming soon
Two historic clubs host Sacramento events devoted to ancient tradition
After canceling March event, Arboretum nursery offers 'split sale' to Friends and public
NEW Purple flannel hash patties with roasted beets
No fooling: Chilly nights forecast, with possible frost
Put your roses on a regular diet with monthly feeding (plus snacks)
Take care of the plants (and soil) until the weather cooperates
Master gardeners host Saturday sales in Woodland – plus an online garden chat
Capital City group hosts annual event including display of prized plants
Pacific Horticulture's 'Design Futurist Award' to honor gardens and designers that make a difference
Sacramento Digs Gardening to your inbox.
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Garden Checklist for week of Jan. 26
As a very dry January winds down, there is still time to get winter chores done:
* Prune, prune, prune. Now is the time to cut back most deciduous trees and shrubs. The exceptions are spring-flowering shrubs such as lilacs.
* Now is the time to prune fruit trees. Clean up leaves and debris around the trees to prevent the spread of disease. Exceptions: Cherry and apricot trees, which should wait until summer.
* Prune roses, even if they’re still trying to bloom. Strip off any remaining leaves, so the bush will be able to put out new growth in early spring.
* Clean up leaves and debris around your newly pruned roses and shrubs. Put down fresh mulch or bark to keep roots cozy.
* After possible rain this weekend, apply horticultural oil to fruit trees to control scale, mites and aphids. Oils need 24 hours of dry weather after application to be effective.
* This is also the time to spray a copper-based oil to peach and nectarine trees to fight leaf curl. Best done when no wet or windy weather occurs in the 24 hours before and after any spraying is done.
* When forced bulbs sprout, move them to a cool, bright window. Give them a quarter turn each day so the stems will grow straight.
* Divide daylilies, Shasta daisies and other perennials.
* Cut back and divide chrysanthemums.
* Plant bare-root roses, trees and shrubs.
* Transplant pansies, violas, calendulas, English daisies, snapdragons and fairy primroses.
* In the vegetable garden, plant fava beans, head lettuce, mustard, onion sets, radicchio and radishes.
* Plant bare-root asparagus and root divisions of rhubarb.
* In the bulb department, plant callas, anemones, ranunculus and gladiolus for bloom from late spring into summer.
* Plant blooming azaleas, camellias and rhododendrons. If you’re shopping for these beautiful landscape plants, you can now find them in full flower at local nurseries.
* Browse through seed catalogs and start making plans for spring and summer. Start pepper and tomato seeds, especially those that require 90 or more days to maturity.