November is a time when the garden begins to slow down for winter, but there are still important tasks to be done to prepare for the cold months ahead. By getting these tasks done, you'll help your garden stay healthy and prepare it for the cold winter months, ensuring it bursts back into life come spring:
Things to do in November:
Last Chance:
Getting Ahead:
The Weather
Here’s a detailed checklist of what to do in the garden during November, broken down into categories for clarity. The weather is turning colder and wetter, so many tasks focus on tidying, protection, and preparing for spring.
General Tasks
| Clear up leaves: | Keep on top of fallen leaves by regularly raking or sweeping them from lawns, paths and borders. They can be composted or left to form leaf mould, which makes excellent soil conditioner. |
| Clean tools: | Give all your gardening tools a good clean and sharpen blades. Wipe down wooden handles and store them in a dry place to prevent rust. This makes them ready for use come spring. |
| Cover bare soil: | If you have any bare soil in vegetable or flower beds, cover it with a mulch of compost, leaf mould or organic matter to protect it from winter weather and prevent weeds. |
| Clean and store garden furniture: | Take down any garden furniture. |
| Protect outdoor furniture: | If you have outdoor furniture, clean it and store it in a shed or garage over winter or cover it with protective covers. |
| Check garden structures: | Ensure that sheds, fences and greenhouses are secure and free from damage. It’s a good time to repair any issues before the wet and windy months set in. |
| Compost: | If you have a compost bin November is a good time to turn it - add material like autumn leaves or kitchen scraps and ensure its properly aerated. |
| Check for pests: | Look for signs of pests such as aphids or slugs hiding under plant debris or in sheltered corners. Deal with them before they breed. |
Vegetables & Herbs
| Harvesting: | Continue to harvest any remaining root vegetables, such as carrots, parsnips, turnips and leeks before the ground freezes. Lift and store any remaining potatoes, they’ll store better if you lift them before the ground freezes. |
| Sowing: | Sow hardy winter salads like lamb’s lettuce, rocket or spinach in a sunny spot or under cloches. Broad beans can be sown directly outside. |
| Planting: | November is an ideal time to plant garlic cloves for next year’s harvest. Plant garlic in well-drained sunny soil. Onion sets and shallots can be also be planted now for a summer harvest. |
| Protect tender herbs: | Lift tender herbs like basil, coriander and mint and either pot them up to bring indoors or dry them for winter use. Hardier herbs such as rosemary, thyme and sage can stay outside, especially if you mulch around the base. |
| Prepare for next season: | Plan your vegetable garden for the next year, considering crop rotation, companion planting and which vegetables to grow in your soil types. |
Fruit
| Harvest late fruits: | Pick the last of any late-season apples, pears or plums. Any remaining fruit that has not ripened should be harvested and brought indoors to ripen. |
| Plant fruit trees: | November is a great month to start planting bare-root fruit trees, such as apples, pears, plums and cherries giving them plenty of time to establish. Ensure you plant in a sunny, well-drained spot. |
| Prune fruit trees: | Start to prune apple, pear and plum trees after leaf drop. Remove any damaged or diseased wood, but avoid heavy pruning of apple and pear trees until late winter or early spring. |
| Plant soft fruit: | You can also plant bare-root raspberries, blackberries, gooseberries and currants. These will establish well over the winter. |
| Protect fruit bushes: | Soft fruit bushes can be pruned from now until March, mulch around the base to protect roots from winter frost. For strawberries, you can add a layer of straw or horticultural fleece to protect the crowns from freezing. |
| Rhubarb: | Overgrown clumps of rhubarb can be lifted and divided. |
| Prepare fruit canes: | Cut back and tie in blackberry, raspberry or other cane fruits that have finished fruiting, but leave the remaining foliage for the winter. |
The Flower Garden
| Plant perennial flowers: | This is also a good time to plant bare-root perennials like peonies, lupins and delphiniums, which will establish well for spring. |
| Cut back foliage: | Cut back dead or damaged foliage from herbaceous perennials, but leave some for winter interest and to protect plant crowns from frost. |
| Tidy borders: | Cut back dead foliage and remove any spent annuals, but leave some seed heads and grasses for winter interest and wildlife. |
| Lift tender plants: | If you have tender plants like dahlias, begonias, or cannas, lift them from the ground, dry them out and store them in a cool, dry place, frost free place for the winter. |
| Protect tender plants: | Bring any plants that are vulnerable to frost (such as fuchsias or geraniums) into a frost-free greenhouse or conservatory. |
| Deadhead and clean-up: | Remove spent flowers and dead plant material from beds to prevent disease and tidy up the garden. |
| Mulching: | Apply a thick mulch of compost, bark or straw around perennial beds and roses to protect them from winter frosts. |
| Plant spring bulbs: | November is the best time to plant spring-flowering bulbs like tulips, daffodils, crocus and hyacinths. Plant them at the correct depth and space them well to allow for growth. |
The Greenhouse
| Clean the greenhouse: | Remove any dead or diseased plants, clean the glass or plastic and ensure ventilation is adequate to prevent fungal diseases. |
| Check heating: | If you use heating in your greenhouse, ensure its functioning properly and safely. Consider using bubble wrap for insulation to keep the temperature more stable. |
| Prepare for over-wintering plants: | Bring in any frost-sensitive plants like fuchsias, geraniums and tender herbs (e.g., basil, coriander and chili peppers) to overwinter in a cool but frost-free greenhouse or conservatory. |
| Sow winter crops: | You can still sow hardy winter crops like winter lettuce, spinach, mizuna and mustard greens in a heated greenhouse. These will be ready for harvest early next year. |
| Watering: | Reduce watering in the greenhouse during winter, but ensure that any plants you bring in are still receiving adequate moisture. Over-watering can cause rot in cool conditions. |
| Pot up over-wintering plants: | Bring in any tender plants that need to be overwintered, such as geraniums, fuchsias and tender herbs. Store them in a cool, dry place. |
Containers
| Check drainage: | Raise pots off the ground using pot-feet or bricks to improve drainage and avoid waterlogging. |
| Protect pots: | Wrap containers or move them to a sheltered spot to protect from frost; insulate if necessary. |
| Debris: | Remove debris from containers, dead foliage, clean out old compost, ready for next season. |
Trees & Shrubs
| Plant bare-root trees and shrubs: | November is a great time to plant bare-root trees, shrubs and roses. Ensure you water them in well after planting to help establish roots. |
| Prune deciduous trees: | Remove dead, diseased or damaged wood from deciduous trees and shrubs. This is also a good time to prune climbing roses and deciduous hedging plants. |
| Mulch trees: | Add a layer of mulch around newly planted trees and shrubs to protect the roots from frost. |
| Check stakes and ties: | Ensure any newly planted or young trees are properly staked and tied to avoid wind damage during winter storms. |
| Protect tender shrubs: | Wrap tender shrubs or plants in horticultural fleece to protect them from frost or harsh winter winds. |
Hedges
| Trim hedges: | Give hedges a final trim if weather allows, before the worst of the winter weather sets in. |
| Planting: | Plant bare-root hedging plants while dormant (e.g. hawthorn, hornbeam) in suitable conditions. |
| Debris: | Remove fallen leaves/pine needles from hedge bases to allow airflow and reduce fungal issues. |
The Lawn
| Mowing: | If the weather is mild, give your lawn one last mow before winter, but raise the mower blades to avoid cutting the grass too short. |
| Feeding: | Apply a winter lawn feed, which is high in potassium, to help strengthen the grass and improve its resistance to the cold. |
| Aerating: | Use a garden fork or lawn aerator to create small holes in the lawn, which helps with drainage and allows air to reach the roots. |
| Rake up fallen leaves: | Regularly rake up fallen leaves from the lawn to prevent them from smothering the grass. If left, they can also encourage moss growth. |
| Check for moss: | If your lawn is prone to moss, use a moss killer or rake it out manually. |
Wildlife and the Pond
| Remove debris: | Keep the pond surface clear of fallen leaves by using a pond net. This helps prevent decay and reduces the risk of sludge building up. |
| Trim back aquatic plants: | Cut back any dead or decaying stems and leaves from aquatic plants, leaving hardier varieties in place for the winter. |
| Clean the pond filter: | Clean out your pond filter and ensure that it is working properly. |
| Check fish health: | If you have fish in your pond, reduce feeding as water temperatures drop. Ensure they have enough oxygen and a safe place to retreat from colder temperatures. |
| Prepare for winter: | Consider using a pond heater or aerator to keep a portion of the pond surface unfrozen, which helps with gas exchange and fish health. |