Dig In: Garden checklist for week of Jan. 25
Sun! After several chilly days of Tule fog, gusty winds blew out that thick cloud layer to allow us to bask in some winter warmth.
While much of the nation is shivering in blizzard conditions, Sacramento can expect our last week of January to be sunny with above-average temperatures. According to the National Weather Service, highs should be pushing up against 60 degrees most afternoons. Normal for this week: 54 degrees.
Overnight lows will be cold but not freezing, staying above 38 degrees in the valley. A very slight chance of rain is in the forecast for the early hours of Wednesday morning. Otherwise, the forecast looks dry – and clear.
It’s time for some winter gardening. Sharpen those pruners and get to work!
* Enjoy sunny winter days by planting for spring. Transplant pansies, violas, calendulas, English daisies, snapdragons and fairy primroses.
* In the vegetable garden, plant fava beans, head lettuce, mustard, onion sets, radicchio and radishes.
* Plant bare-root asparagus and root divisions of rhubarb.
* Plant bare-root roses, trees and shrubs.
* In the bulb department, plant callas, anemones, ranuculous and gladiolus for bloom from late spring into summer.
* Plant blooming azaleas, camellias and rhododendrons. If you’re shopping for these beautiful landscape plants, you can now find them in full flower at local nurseries.
* Prune, prune, prune. Now is the time to cut back most deciduous trees and shrubs. The exceptions are spring-flowering shrubs such as lilacs.
* Now is the time to prune fruit trees. Clean up leaves and debris around the trees to prevent the spread of disease.
* Prune roses, even if they’re still trying to bloom. Strip off any remaining leaves, so the bush will be able to put out new growth in early spring.
* Clean up leaves and debris around your newly pruned roses and shrubs. Put down fresh mulch or bark to keep roots cozy.
* Apply horticultural oil to fruit trees soon after a rain to control scale, mites and aphids. Oils need 24 hours of dry weather after application to be effective.
* This is also the time to spray a copper-based oil to peach and nectarine trees to fight leaf curl.
* Divide daylilies, Shasta daisies and other perennials.
* Cut back and divide chrysanthemums.
