It is October, which means the growing season is coming to an end. For me, it has been a mostly disappointing year. Many of the plants I normally count on simply did not come to fruition. The squash, eggplant, bell peppers and beans all failed to produce enough to justify the space, water and attention they received. Gardening is like that. Every spring, I plant things with considerable optimism. By October, some of them have justified that confidence and others have spent the summer demonstrating that they never agreed to participate. At this point, I have a couple of tomato plants struggling to ripen their last few fruits and two lemon cucumber plants with a few cucumbers remaining. Everything else has been pulled and discarded….

September is usually the month when I start thinking about how to extend the garden a little longer and what needs to be done before winter. This year, I am mostly thinking about how to put it out of its misery. My yard and garden have both been challenging. The yard problem turned out to be the aspen tree we planted more than 20 years ago. New shoots were appearing all over the lawn, while other patches of grass were turning brown or dying. The tree itself was not looking particularly healthy either, so I finally had it removed. That solved one problem and revealed another. Underneath the lawn is apparently an underground aspen transportation system. Roots are everywhere. I have no particularly good idea…

Saturday started as a perfectly ordinary day. I got up, watered the vegetables, had some breakfast and spent part of the morning working on Monday’s article. Late in the morning my gardener unexpectedly showed up. He usually comes on Sunday, but I hadn’t seen him for a couple of weeks, so we talked about several things that needed attention. Later, when I went outside to finish a few follow-up chores, I noticed smoke in the distance. My wife had heard there was a fire somewhere near Verdi, a small community west of us. We’ve had fires over there before. They came and went without causing us much concern, so this one didn’t seem particularly noteworthy either. By the middle of the afternoon, that began to…

Yesterday my wife asked me to put together something for dinner. The reason wasn’t that I had suddenly become a better cook. It was because I had discovered a ten-inch zucchini and she indicated that she had been waiting to try this recipe. She went off to play bridge, so assembling dinner became my assignment. Now, anyone who has grown zucchini knows they seem to have two speeds. They either refuse to grow at all or they suddenly appear as if someone snuck into the garden overnight and left them there. I could have sworn that zucchini wasn’t there the day before. Alongside it was a six-inch pattypan squash that I also hadn’t seen. Even if you inspect the garden every day, these things somehow…

August is the time you get to take advantage of all the things you did in April, May and June. The peaches are getting ripe. In my case this year that means all twelve of them. Not like last year when I had to prop up the branches because they were so heavy with fruit. The apples aer getting ripe. This year there are a lot of apples. Probably more than we can process. Last year we had only few to pick. Not sure why the vast differences year to year for these trees. The vegetables are there for the picking. Lots of squash. Good tomatoes. Peppers are ho hum. Eggplant and cucumbers are both lagging so far but I expect them to come around…

June is when the Reno garden really starts to show its intentions. The roses are blooming, the tomatoes are finally beginning to grow, and the weeds seem to have declared war. A few hours spent in the yard now can make the difference between a productive summer and a season spent trying to catch up. June sunshine in northern Nevada can be surprisingly intense. Container plants may need daily watering, and newly planted vegetables often require extra attention during hot, windy afternoon. Here is set of activities to keep things looking good 1. Deadhead Your Perennials and Annual Flowers To encourage continued flowering, perennials and annual flowers should be deadheaded this month. As the blooms fade, make sure to cut off or pinch the dead flowers. 2….

Spring showed up early this year—or at least it looked like it did. February was warm. Sunny days with temperatures getting into the 80s. Things started to wake up. It felt like we might be in for an early season. A few brave plants even made an appearance, and it was tempting to get ahead of things. Then March and April reminded us where we live—even if we never did get much snow. Cold mornings, late frosts, and just enough uncertainty to make you regret getting a head start with seeds in the ground and a few vegetables in pots. After more than 20 years here, I should know better than to plant anything serious too early. In northern Nevada, that’s not unusual. Spring doesn’t…

This is a bit late but there is still plenty of time to undertake these tasks. So, give your green thumb a workout this month to get in shape for the main event when spring arrives. There’s plenty to do to prep your garden, indoors and out. Protect Plants From Critters Between snows, check prized landscape plants. Use pieces of bird netting to cover vulnerable plants that have visible leaves, like roses. Deer and rabbits usually leave these plants alone, except when they’re the only live leaves in the winter garden. Clean up roses and other flowering shrubs while you’re in the garden, cutting back old leaves. This allows blooms to shine. Spray Dormant Oil While woody plants are dormant, apply a horticultural oil spray….

Nights may be bringing frost, but days still offer sunny afternoons for outdoor chores. Learn what you should be doing in the garden in November. Plant Spring Bulbs By this point in the season, look for spring bulbs being sold at a discount. Look for bulbs that are firm to the touch with no signs of mold. Consider planting daffodils, which deliver reliable spring color and clumps that will increase in size over time. Choose varieties that flower at different times, and you can have daffodils in bloom for up to two months. Start with ‘February Gold,’ then ‘Tete-a-Tete,’ and then ones like ‘Ice Follies’ (shown). Daffodils are critter-resistant; deer and rabbits both ignore them. The stems make excellent cut flowers that last long in…