Looking out my window while I write this, I am gazing at the bounty that is Star Gardens. The trees are starting to turn, and the hummers are flitting around the Salvias and other late bloomers. We just received rain overnight, and the skies are cloudy but dry so far. Our darker, colder, wetter days are ahead. As much as I love warm (not brutally hot) and sun, I look forward to this time of year when life slows down some. We need the rest as much as the plants do. The time is about to change, bringing darkness early, and the mornings have been quite chilly here. We did get to 31 the other day, but it was not a killing frost. Winter hours begin Nov. 1. Still open every day, but from 10-4, not 9-5. We will be closed on Thanksgiving Day.
Thanksgiving is as late as it gets this year, so we have decided to get our wreaths, garland and cut trees in for the weekend before the holiday. Our cut trees will be ready to sell on Saturday, the 23rd of November. We will be getting in the usual Doug Firs, Nobles, and Nordmanns. The bigger trees go fast, so even if you are not ready to put your tree in the house yet, it is recommended to shop early and store it outside in the shade til you are ready to bring it in and decorate.
I just saw an article about how threatened our planet’s tree diversity is. It is estimated more than 30% of the different species are at risk. Add the fact that trees are a habitat and food for so many species, and we are talking about a serious issue. Insurance companies are making people cut down trees and pull out vegetation close to their houses. This is short-sighted, in my opinion. It will only add to our climate collapse and wildfire threat. We need trees for shade. We need shrubs for habitat. We need flowers for pollinators. Hardwood trees that lose their leaves are on the fire smart lists. So are deciduous shrubs. Lots of natives make the lists along with Rockrose and Lavenders. It is okay to plant herbaceous (leafy with no hardwood) perennials close to buildings. If it was up to the insurance companies, we would live in a baking, flood, and mudslide barren wasteland. Not good. To encourage tree planting, all our fruit and ‘shade’ trees are 30% off in November. This does not include evergreens, Citrus, or Olives. A whole new round of fruit trees are coming bare root in January. We are taking orders to reserve what is due to arrive.
November is the month to do your first dormant spraying of fruit trees. If we have another wet spring, the peach leaf curl will be awful again, and if you had it bad this year, we recommend you do not skip the 3 times in winter spraying with fungicide. We sell organically approved copper, sulfur, or Fungicide 5. Copper is considered the best for control of curl. Although spraying the ground and under the tree is encouraged on the label, we do not recommend to avoid copper build up in the soil. Seaweed spray is also a good preventative and is safe to use even when leaves emerge. This is the month to start applying True Blue to your Hydrangeas if you want blue flowers.
It is not too late to sow some herbs in the ground. Cilantro and Parsley can take a little frost. Arugula would be another that can handle the cold. It is also a good time to seed out Borage and Bread seed Poppies. Depending on where you live in the county, you can also seed out the cool season leafy greens. It is probably better to plant starts of heading vegetables like Broccoli, Cabbage, Cauliflower, and Brussels Sprouts. We have a full selection of starts and seeds for you. We sell floating row cover to keep your babies warmer at night, too.
As the nights get colder, we like to cover our starts here to keep them looking better. We have started covering our Citrus with N-Sulate and have stopped feeding them til February. Any new growth will not be able to take the cold here, even covered.
November is a great month to plant spring-blooming bulbs like Tulips and Daffodils. In addition, Crocus, Hyacinths, Paperwhites, Muscari and more make great splashes of spring color in pots or the ground. We have them in stock along with onions and garlic. Saffron crocus needs to go in the ground, too. Our organic seed potatoes should be getting here soon, too. Bulb pots make great gifts. We will help with that by having all glazed pottery and the Etruscan clay pots at 30% off this month. We need to make room for our live, potted Christmas trees coming soon, so Roses are 30% off too. We will need to prune them soon to make room, and more are coming next year.
I have to bring in my battery timers to prevent cracking from freezing. I drain and wrap my exposed irrigation valves too, along with my exposed faucet pipes down at the greenhouse where the cold really settles and at the house. I hate ruptured pipes and frozen faucets. A little prevention goes a long way, and you can never tell exactly what type of super cold front could be headed our way this winter.
We will be spending more time indoors, and greenery in the house can be a big plus. Plants are widely accepted as being therapeutic. Unfortunately, our sales room gets way too cold for some houseplants. Add to that we need to make room for holiday plants like Zygo Cactus, Poinsettias, and the like. November is the traditional month we put them on special. We also need to refrain from doing restocking until the dead of winter has passed. Houseplants are 30% off. This does not include the seasonal ‘holiday plants’.
Winter Hours Begin Nov. 1st thru February
Open 7 days a week, 10-4
November Specials
30% off
- Fruit and Shade Trees
- Roses
- Metal Wall Hangings
- Glazed Pottery
- Etruscan Clay Pots
