October is a busy time of year for gardening in the low Arizona desert.
One of the first things you can do is change your watering schedule with the cooler weather teasing us. You don’t need to water as frequently – no matter what you’re growing. The rains we’ve had this weekend have also helped and will allow you to turn off your schedule for a few days!
It’s also a great time to do some light pruning and remove any dead debris. By light pruning, I mean you want to be careful not to over prune those frost sensitive plants (Lantana, Yellow-Bells, Orange Jubilee, Succulents etc.). You can wait until Mid-February to prune these.
I could also start listing all the planting that can get done, but it would be a long list. To give you an idea of what to start with: brassica plants, legumes, spinaches and lettuces, and all varieties of shrubs and trees.
No Tricks here: Boyce Thompson Arboretum sale is going on until the end of the month and Desert Botanical Gardens sale is on from 21 October – 23 so get Treatin’ – But don’t forget to check out your local nurseries!