Common garden task which will ‘ruin flowers’ should be avoided in November
November serves as the delicate transition from autumn’s golden warmth to winter’s cold embrace. As the clocks turn back and daylight wanes, gardeners may feel the pang of lost time in the garden. Yet, despite the shortening days, there’s still a wealth of tasks to occupy your time throughout the month.
However, caution is advised when wielding pruning shears. Not all plants should undergo trimming at this time, warns Gene Caballero, co-founder of GreenPal. He emphasizes the importance of understanding a plant’s growth cycle. Improper pruning can undermine both its health and blooming potential.
Before making any cuts, Caballero strongly suggests doing thorough research or consulting an expert to ensure you are fostering, not hindering, growth. Certain shrubs, including azaleas, rhododendrons, forsythia, and lilacs, have already prepared for spring by setting bloom buds during autumn. Pruning these plants now could result in the loss of next season’s flowers.
Similarly, hydrangeas—particularly oakleaf and bigleaf varieties—rely on old wood for their blooms. Pruning them prematurely may rob you of the vibrant display they would have provided in spring. Additionally, some trees, if pruned too late into fall, may begin to bleed sap. While this sap bleeding doesn’t harm the tree, it can be unsightly, and Caballero recommends waiting until trees are fully dormant, ideally in late winter or early spring, to prune.
Special attention should be paid to oaks. Pruning these trees in November leaves them susceptible to oak wilt, a deadly fungal disease spread by beetles. To safeguard against this, Caballero advises pruning oaks only in the heart of winter, when the beetle vectors are inactive.
Perennials and ornamental grasses, which offer visual interest in winter, also provide crucial shelter for wildlife and protect the plant’s crown from the cold. However, it’s best to hold off on trimming these plants until early spring, preserving their winter function and beauty.
