Last updated on November 1st, 2020
My mantra for November: Leave the garden in autumn the way you wish to find it in spring. Every weed pulled, every tool put away, and every clean-up operation completed before snow counts against the inevitable April bedlam. What to do first? Maybe this list will help:
First, take a walk around your yard, and observe the awesome autumn color. I love how certain perennials fade with utter grace.
Leaves. Gather and shred these, and trust me — you won’t have to buy expensive soil amendments in spring. Shredded leaves transformed the horrid soil on my property into rich, worm-filled loam. 
There are lots of ways to shred leaves. Several years ago, I purchased a Flowtron Ultimate Leaf Shredder from this online source. The gadget turns whole leaves into finely-shredded, instantly-usable mulch.
Alternatively, you can stuff leaves into a big bin (such as a garbage can) and attack them with a weed-whacker. Or, if you have a lawn mower equipped with a bag, just mow the leaves to shred them. As you work, dump the contents of the bag into a pile, or empty it directly onto garden beds.
Dutch Bulbs. If you haven’t yet planted your tulips, hyacinths, crocus, and other cold-hardy bulbs, you’d better get hopping. Bulbs always perform better when they are allowed to make roots before the ground freezes solidly.
Garlic. Be sure to plant this bulb, too. I plant individual cloves 3 inches deep and about 6 inches apart. For more details, check out my garlic-growing tutorial.
Iris. Lightly mulch first year plantings after a hard freeze. Mature plantings don’t require protection. (Pictured above, in my Serpentine Garden: pale blue irises, and pinkish-red Weigela ‘Wine and Roses.’)
Hellebores. Dig in a little cottonseed meal or alfalfa meal around the plants. Also, give them a top dressing of compost or shredded leaves. Wait until flower buds emerge in late winter to remove old foliage.
Hostas. Cut faded foliage back to the ground. Refrain, however, from dividing or transplanting at this time; you’ll have better success if you wait until spring. (Pictured above: Hosta ‘Wide Brim’ in the Woodland Garden.)
Hoses, Faucets and Gutters. Store hoses in cellar or garage; drain faucets, and clean out leaves from gutters. I hire out the gutter-job.
Boxwood. If new plantings are of dubious hardiness, either cover them with burlap or spray them with WiltPruf. WiltPruf, an anti-transpirant, protects against wind-burn. Hardy varieties like ‘Winter Gem’ (pictured above, in my backyard) need no protection whatsoever. How I propagate and grow this great shrub.
Roses. If you live in zone 5 or colder, as I do, be prepared to work. Once the top two or three inches of soil has frozen, mound shredded leaves (aren’t you glad you have these?) up a foot or more around plants. Cut only the most exuberant canes back to keep them from whipping around in the wind. Otherwise, do not attempt any pruning until spring.
Raised Beds. If soil is low, replenish now with compost, shredded leaves, or a mixture of equal parts manure, top soil, and sand. This way, your beds will be ready for springtime planting.
Winter-Sowing. Wanna start your summer garden at the wrong time of the year? Then do what I do, and gather some gallon-size milk and water jugs. These “miniature greenhouses” are perfect for seed sowing in the snow. The details.
Houseplants:
African Violets. Give plants in windows a quarter turn every other day to keep them shapely. Plants under fluorescent lights do not require turning, but they do need more food and water. More details here.
Boston Fern. If your plant is too large, or if its leaves are withering, simply divide it into several smaller plants. These youngsters will be easy to manage, and they won’t shed foliage all over the floor. As you can see in the photo above, I display them on glass shelves in my music room window garden. My profile of this graceful Nephrolepsis exaltata .
Dutch Bulbs. Placed in cold storage (this means the spare refrigerator for me, at least until temperatures in my cellar drop appreciably), these potted bulbs need weekly checking for water. Don’t let roots dry out! Click here for more details.
Thanksgiving Cacti.Mine decided they were Halloween cacti this year, for they are now fully in flower. Water and feed this Schlumbergera truncate weekly while it blooms. More cultural details here.
Rabbits-foot Fern. If leaves are turning brown at an alarming rate, I’m afraid that surgery is the only cure. But here’s the good news: you’ll obtain many, many new Rabbits-foot ferns! Proceed this way.
Narcissus Paperwhites. Plant at mid-month for Christmas flowers. I plant mine in pebbles and water. And to avoid overly-tall flowering stalks, I give them a nip of gin. More details in this fun post.
Cook something!
Red Bell Pepper Soup. This soup was inspired by late-summer produce from my garden. It’s a healthful puree of ripe, Vitamin C-rich bell peppers, plus zingy garlic, fragrant thyme, and creamy russet potatoes. And Lawd A-Mighty — it’s delicious! Here’s the recipe.
Turkey-Carrot-Bacon Loaf. This tastes like a dream. Besides the usual eggs and bread crumbs, I added shredded carrots, chopped parsley, sharp cheddar cheese, and fragrant Worcestershire sauce to the ground poultry. Then I topped the loaf with rich tomato paste and ribbons of sweet, smokey bacon. Here’s the recipe.
Rustic Apple Cake. Don’t pretend you don’t want to try this simple dessert. It’s rich, fragrant, and perfect for devouring after a leaf-raking session. Here’s the step-by-step.
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Deborah Goodman says
We have been working on putting the garden to bed for the winter this week and of course dreaming about next spring’s garden. It’s amazing how many chores there are in the fall but so worth it come spring when it is time to start all over again. Oh and I finally got all the pie pumpkins done up. All ten quarts!!! Lots of pies, muffins and bread in our home this winter!!
Kevin Lee Jacobs says
Hi Deborah – Kudos on your harvest and processing. Pumpkin-everything is in your future. YUM.
Mary in Iowa says
Loved taking this garden tour on a rainy day here. It’s a nice break from incessant political shenanigans and the news of the ambush and murders of two policemen in my metro area this morning.
The milk jugs, they are a-collectin’; 160 hostas cut down and layered in the compost pen with other garden waste, shredded leaves and around 1000 lbs of horse nuggets; about another 100 hostas to go, along with scads of other perennial greenery and ever more leaves to shred as different trees decide to give up their leaves; have more of the velvety brown compost from last fall’s pen to spread; more peppers to fry, green tomato relish to make, leeks, parsley and tat soi to harvest. Today’s rain was sorely needed, and called for a respite with a book in the porch swing behind the massive blooming Heavenly Blue morning glory vines that make up one wall of my porch “cave”.
Kevin Lee Jacobs says
I thought about you when I heard the news out of Iowa. Awful. As for the garden, you’re waaaay ahead of me in terms of projects accomplished. And how lucky to have morning glories blooming in November. Mine bit the dust after a mild October frost!
Mary in Iowa says
Three other varieties of morning glories bit the dust in that early frost, but the Heavenly Blues laughed at the cold and are just smothered with blue glory. They’ve thrown tendrils a few feet through the air and twined around a porch swing chain. I’m afraid if I sit there for too long, the headlines would read, “After Leaving Machete in House, Local Woman Strangled by Vines!”
I look at your tree filled yard and suffer pangs of leaf envy. And the color! Oh, the glorious colors all set off by the gorgeous green of the conifers.
Merrill in Illinois says
Kevin-beautiful pictures and inspiring! So I’m headed out today to the back yard to begin fall cleanup. I am redoing/refiguring the back to add more woody shrubs and trees to add seasonal color and habitat/food for wild life. Look forward to more of your posts.
Susan says
Oh no Kevin, I’m exhausted just from reading your “to do” list. I think I need a nap.
Pam says
Great post. Love the pics of all the flowers. I purchased the leaf shredder you highlighted, last year but never used it. Our daughter was diagnosed with multiple myeloma and not much has been accomplished in my garden this last year. But, yesterday was a beautiful day up here in Door County, Wisconsin. Sunny and 60!! My hubby and I went out with leaf blower and a huge tarp and collected TONS of leaves. He looked like the grinch with all the leaves in tow (when he has the little sled and the HUGE sleigh full of gifts), driving down our street. I shredded for a few hours. That shredder is one of the BEST investments ever!! Thank you for sharing. Beds are all Put to bed for the winter. Garlic planted. Still can’t trim back raspberries because their vines are still loaded with fruit. Lucky me. Thanks for your post. Enjoy your writings and pictures! Keep up the good work.
Laura in Georgia says
Kevin, I love the beautiful color in your yard.
I have been waiting for some cooler weather to do a bunch of mulching. Leaves are beginning to really fall now. I will be busy blowing, raking and shredding. My worm bin likes whole leaves, so I make a BIG pile beside it to feed the worms through the year. I have a couple of mulch piles to spread around. Have broccoli, chard, beets, garlic and leeks in the ground. They will over winter here. Fresh broccoli for Xmas dinner! The rest of the garden will be cover crops or mulch.
I have a bumper crop of sweet potatoes – no quality control. Some football size ones! Any new ideas for them?
Carol Samsel says
I’ve been diligently working on putting everything to bed for the winter. Since my veggie garden has been attached by Bermuda Grass and Creeping Charlie I had to put in a lot more effort on that front. Everything that can be is now covered with cardboard and black plastic hoping to smother out what I couldn’t get pulled out :/ The last week has been a marathon of bulb planting and leaf raking. The shredder bit the dust so we are mowing first this year…new shredder on the to buy list. I have long ropes of milk jugs hanging in the basement waiting for the winter planting season. 🙂 Next on the list before the ground freezes is to reclaim a section of the woods that have been taken over by invasive honeysuckle bush and autumn olive 🙁
Marcia says
Kevin,
I’ve got my fall planted bulbs growing well now. We have still not had a killing frost. Should I cover these little gems with my leaf mulch? Maybe just a thin coating??
Marcia
Carol says
Love, love you weekly post!!
Thanks for all the info you give to us who want to be more line you in the garden and kitchen!!!
Thanks Kevin
Sharon says
How do you get rid of invasive bushes such as honeysuckle? They put up a formidable front!
Molly says
Thanks! So much helpful and delicious information.
Melissa says
Thanks for this fall info! I do vacation rentals in Taos New Mexico at 7000 ft. Have 11 of my own and manage 9! Was a professional landscaper in California prior to Taos so of course have to landscape all my properties ! Big deciduous trees on all plus in ground gardens and ridiculous numbers of container plants so I am really jumping right now! Leaves galore, trim back perennials and pull spent annuals from pots. Turned off all irrigation systems the first 27 degree night but warm days so most plants still blooming their little hearts out…
Celeste from Montana says
Kevin, I love your mantra: “Leave the garden in Autumn the way you wish to find it in Spring”! Last year was the first time I’d ever heard that, but alas, it was too late for me when early snows came to Montana and some things still hadn’t been picked up. This year I’m on it big time, and repeat the mantra to whomever will listen.
I envy anyone with the cool looking red shredder you recommend. For me, storage space is the problem. Drats.
Fran says
Kevin,
I’ve been dragging my feet to start many necessary chores due to our mild fall. I know it must be done and reading your list of orderly chores has inspired me to bite the bullet and begin on this glorious day here in Oak Lawn, Il. Love your website . You bring a smile to my face all the time!
Diane R. says
Hi Kevin,
Looking for your most recent recipe for Pate Brissee. I came across 2 different recipes, so I would love the one you use now. I also need to purchase a candy thermometer (for your sesame
chicken recipe) and need a recommendation please. Always looking for your SHOP to be open, but sadly it is not. I love getting your suggested tools etc.
Judy LeRoux says
What a lovely place to live! We are in North Carolina Foothills and are just getting to cooler weather. I still have tomatoes! Love your site work and writings keep it up!
Linda A says
Thanks for the tip on Hellebores. I’m slowly learning about them. Planted one
last year and it’s doing well, despite my being a newbie. I will try the alfalfa.
I have pellets – guess that will work? Or do I need to crush them?
Yesterday, I bought some paperwhites to force so this post is perfect timing! (An FYI –
your link for them doesn’t work but I found some info through your search box.) Thanks,
Kevin.
Joanne Monroe says
Thanks for your inspiration, Kevin! Yesterday I started my fall clean-up, thinking of your mantra and feeling pleased that I’ve taken it up as my own.
Also harvested some Joe Pye, Obedient, and Culver’s Root seeds with hopes of success in winter sowing them.
Now I’m looking forward to looking at your post about the upcoming videos and wishing you the best for all of your projects!
Carolyn Contois says
Thanks for the beautiful pictures…as always, your blog is a nice break. It always makes me smile and want to run to the kitchen and start cooking!
Susan Golden says
It is so hard to take this November seriously when it was in the middle 60s and beautifully sunny with blue skies today! I keep telling my husband, “We have to get rolling and get things buttoned up before the snow flies!!!” He just lowers himself into the last chair remaining outside and takes a deep breath and says, “I’ll get to it tomorrow!” and smiles his very contented smile! We have our little plant nursery and I have 5 raised beds of young boxwood plants (rooted cuttings growing since fall of 2014) that I am going to cover with low tunnels to protect them from wind damage! I may have to import someone to help me if I can’t get him out of that chair! As always, your gardens all look ship shape and ready for a nap! 🙂
Arden | Real-Food-Real-Life.com says
I’m so envious of all your great shredded leaves. The good news is we don’t have any leaves to rake; the bad news is we don’t have any leaves to use as mulch. I plant tomatoes and herbs (and a couple of other random things that never live) in what used to be the “decorative” bed all along the front of my house and the soil is just plain crappy–hard packed, rocky. Any thoughts (in the absence of shredded leaves) on what I might layer on there *now* to help me have better soil in the spring?
Sheri says
made your buckwheat buttermilk pancakes this morning and they were a huge hit! Delicious. Thanks
Anna Lois Weaver says
What makes the white spot on Afghan violets leaves. I water from the bottom so that is not the problem. someone mentioned in one of the comments on afghan violets, that it is a virus spreading like wildfire. What is the cause and remedy?
Nancy says
First I want to say I love your new website and I also especially appreciate the November chores list because it inspires me to get the tremendous amount of work done when I really don’t want to. I’d like to say that after doing a lot of research both online and asking gardening friends, I bought a leaf vacuum/chopper a year ago that I love, love, love. Now if I can just get to all the huge amounts of maple, oak, dogwood and redbud leaves that are all coming down at once. Spent the weekend winterizing our two vegetable gardens and some of the flower and shrub beds and hope to have another good week and weekend to continue “making the rounds,” as I refer to tidying up only those things that are not very attractive any more and leaving those that are still in their glory as they retire for winter.
Connie Story says
Mine is an Election Day cactus!
Naomi S. says
Great informative post, as usual, Kevin. I have been bemoaning the fact that my arthritis was giving me such trouble that I couldn’t get outside in any of our warmish weather for the last two weeks. I just looked at all the leaves that needed raking and the flowers I wanted to either bring in the house or take cuttings from and felt totally defeated. But I have been given another chance! Thanks to the mild weather–hopefully for the whole week–and better meds for the joints, I got out today and raked some of the leaves and moved some plants to take my cuttings. It felt so good to be out there with little to no pain and to be piling the leaves up for my five-year-old grandson to jump in. He was quite the little helper, too. Raked almost leaves as I did.
I always keep my raked leaves and spread them by my back fence and wish I had a shredder. So I was really interested in what you said about putting them in a bin and using a weed whacker on them. It really works? ‘Cause I have a weed whacker and I don’t have a shredder and probably won’t have until I win the Publishers Clearing House sweepstakes! I’m gonna try it!
Thanks for the great photos and the recipes and all of it!
Pat J. says
Kevin, you have inspired me to purchase a small shredder. Composting is very slow here on my very sandy beach site but I do try to compost everything possible. Is the Flowtron capable of shredding long flower stems and long grasses, do you think. I don’t have many leaves apart from pine needles.
Gina says
Kevin,
I wish we were neighbors. Your weekly updates makes my week that much more enjoyable If you and yours ever want to move to Massachusetts, we would be happy to have you!
Best,
Gina
Zada says
Love the swing!