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Dig In: Garden checklist for week of Oct. 1

Light rain, cool temperatures and warm soil create great conditions for planting fall garden

The Sacramento area received some light rainfall Saturday morning to end September on a wet note.

The Sacramento area received some light rainfall Saturday morning to end September on a wet note. Kathy Morrison

Surprise! Fall is making a (little) splash with a drizzly weekend.

Sacramento’s last day of September will be unusually cool and possibly wet, says the National Weather Service. Along with a 40% chance of rain, afternoon temperatures will be decidedly cool; Saturday’s expected high is only 68 degrees – 20 degrees below average for this date.

“Scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms are expected to continue today through tomorrow, though the majority of rainfall will occur today,” the NWS Sacramento office tweeted Saturday morning. “Watch out for slick roadways and minor ponding while driving.”

Less than 0.15 inches are expected in downtown Sacramento; north of I-80 likely will get a little more. That’s probably not enough to prompt turning off the sprinklers. Check your soil to see which plants still need a drink.

September ends our “water year” and it’s usually a very dry month. If we do get one-tenth inch of rain, it would push our September rain total to above normal. Before Saturday, September had totaled 0.02; average for the month in Sacramento is 0.08.

Although it feels very fall-ish this weekend, our summer heat isn’t over. Following this cool spell, we’ll have a few days in the mid 80s. Then, the weather service expects Sacramento to return to 90 degrees by Thursday and stay hot through next weekend. That heat may coax a few more tomatoes to ripen and will keep soil warm.

So, make the most of this cooler weather. Get to work on your fall garden:

* October is the best month to plant trees, shrubs and perennials. Plants become established – sending down deep, strong roots – faster in warm soil.

* Divide and replant perennials. Add a little well-aged compost and bone meal to the planting hole, but hold off on other fertilizers until spring. Keep the transplants well-watered (but not wet) for the first month as they become settled.

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

* Plant seeds for radishes, bok choy, mustard, spinach and peas.

* Plant garlic and onions.

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

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

* Dig up corms and tubers of gladioli, dahlias and tuberous begonias after the foliage dies. Clean and store in a cool, dry place.

* Treat azaleas, gardenias and camellias with chelated iron if leaves are yellowing between the veins.

* Clean up the summer vegetable garden and compost disease-free foliage.

* Harvest pumpkins and winter squash.

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Garden Checklist for week of Feb. 9

Be careful walking or working in wet soil; it compacts easily.

* Keep the irrigation turned off; the ground is plenty wet with more rain on the way.

* February serves as a wake-up call to gardeners. This month, you can transplant or direct-seed several flowers, including snapdragon, candytuft, lilies, astilbe, larkspur, Shasta and painted daisies, stocks, bleeding heart and coral bells.

* In the vegetable garden, plant Jerusalem artichoke tubers, and strawberry and rhubarb roots.

* Transplant cabbage and its close cousins – broccoli, kale and cauliflower – as well as lettuce (both loose leaf and head).

* Indoors, start peppers, tomatoes and eggplant from seed.

* Plant artichokes, asparagus and horseradish from root divisions.

* Plant potatoes from tubers and onions from sets (small bulbs). The onions will sprout quickly and can be used as green onions in March.

* From seed, plant beets, chard, lettuce, mustard, peas, radishes and turnips.

* Annuals are showing up in nurseries, but wait until the weather warms up a bit before planting. Instead, set out flowering perennials such as columbine and delphinium.

* Plant summer-flowering bulbs including cannas, calla lilies and gladiolus.

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