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Happy Halloween! Now, about November

Sacramento Digs Gardening
BY Kathy Morrison PUBLISHED OCT 31, 2018

Happy Halloween from this cat-o-lantern and the Sacramento Digs Gardening bloggers. (Photo: Kathy Morrison)

Less daylight, but many gardening events and activities

Today is all about costumes, pumpkins and trick-or-treating, but Halloween also ushers in later fall. Here are some fun events and an important reminder for gardeners for the next week:

* Love history and trees? The Sacramento Tree Foundation and the Friends of Sutter's Fort present a free walking tour 10 a.m. this Saturday of the historic trees at Fort Sutter State Historic Park, 2701 L St. in midtown Sacramento. Sign up at www.sactree.com/events .

* The Elk Grove Community Garden will hold its Grand Reopening Open House celebration 1-4 p.m. Saturday. The free event is in honor of the completion of big and small improvements to the garden, which is home to 94 plots. Sounds like it will be quite a party: Garden tours, kids activities and food trucks will be part of the event. The master gardeners will be on hand, too, so bring along your garden questions. The garden is at 10025 Hampton Oak Drive, Elk Grove. Information: www.elkgrovecommunitygarden.o rg

* We've already blogged about the Sacramento Chrysanthemum Show (which is Saturday and Sunday) and the UC Davis Arboretum clearance sale (Saturday), but it doesn't hurt to mention them again. Both are big events for Sacramento gardeners and plant lovers.

* Not enough to fill up your weekend? You could squeeze in a class on "Sustaining the Environment with Native Plants," 9 a.m. to noon Saturday at Soil Born Farms' American River Ranch, 2140 Chase Drive in Rancho Cordova. Mark Lum of the California Native Plant Society leads the class, which cover analyzing native plants for human use and how to collect them in a sustainable way. For ages 18 and up. Offered through the Sacramento Natural Foods Co-Op. $25 ($1.67 service fee), available on Brown Paper Tickets .

* Daylight saving time ends at 2 a.m. this Sunday; don't forget to set your clocks back before you go to bed. The time change is great for early-morning gardeners, though we'll have to bundle up a bit before going outside to prune or pick. Sunset moves up to just about 5 p.m. Those long evenings of light will return after standard time ends March 10, 2019.

Checking our Garden Calendar is a great way to keep up on events large and small in the region throughout the seasons.

-- Kathy Morrison

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GENERAL GARDENING

An article about gardening.

Keywords:

Sutter's Fort gardening Sacramento native plants Elk Grove Community Garden events California Native Plant Society Soil Born Farms UC Davis Arboretum Sacramento Tree Foundation chrysanthemums

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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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