So it’s no surprise that most of November’s gardening activities are still taking place outside.  You might start in the garden.  Is it all cleaned up?  Have you removed the debris and added lime to the soil in readiness for planting next spring?  A soil test will tell you how much to add.

If you haven’t finished pruning out this year’s fruiting canes on your raspberry bushes, do it now. If you wait until spring, the dead canes will serve as reservoirs for disease, increasing the possibility of spur, cane blight, and other diseases.  For blueberries, however, wait until late winter to prune when winter injury can be more easily determined.

For perennials, it is okay to wait until spring to cut them back as long as they are not diseased or have poor foliage.  In fact, you may want to wait, even if you have time to prune them now, as many provide a nice winter effect.

This is also a good time to check labels on perennials to make sure they will last through the winter.  Redo them if necessary.  Edge beds to get ready for spring.  Make sure clay pots and garden statuary are covered or out of the weather for winter.  Otherwise, moisture and freezing may crack them.

Protect evergreens from harsh winter winds by building a simple windscreen.  Position the posts on the sides most prone to winds (generally the west and north) and wrap with burlap.  Don’t use plastic as this will heat up, causing the plants to fry on sunny days.  Continue to water evergreens until the ground freezes.

If you still haven’t gotten your bulbs in the ground, do so early in the month or consider putting them in pots to force at 40 degrees F for 12 weeks.  An unheated but nonfreezing cellar or garage is ideal.  Keep the soil moist, not wet.  When bulbs start growing in the spring, generally in March, move to an area with more warmth.

When cleaning out underbrush and unwanted vegetation around your home, think of the wildlife.   Brambles, especially blackberries and raspberries, provide both food and shelter for small animals and birds.

This is a good time to stock up on birdseed for the winter.  Black oil sunflower seed is preferred by most species although you might want to provide niger or thistle seed for finches and suet for woodpeckers and chickadees.  Blue jays (and squirrels, too) like corn–shelled, cracked, or dried on the cob.

Provide a source of water, if possible, preferably a heated bird bath with covered heating element and an automatic shut-off valve or heat cycling on-off switch.  The first protects the birds from injury to their feet, the second will prevent damage to the birdbath if goes dry.  Use a grounded, three pronged outlet to prevent the possibility of electrocution.  Place a flat piece of shale over the heating element to will provide a warm rock for birds to perch on to rest or drink.

Take a few hours to clean, repair, and sharpen your garden tools before putting them away for the season.  Drain the garden hose, roll it up, and store it in the basement or garage.

Using a special additive (available at hardware stores) in the gas tank will help keep moisture out and the gasoline from breaking down as much over winter.  Add a few drops of oil to the cylinder, and change the oil and the spark plugs.  Store pesticides, fertilizers, and other lawn and garden chemicals in a locked cabinet or other high, dry location where they won’t freeze.

Indoors, move your houseplants away from exterior doors to protect them from cold blasts when doors are opened.  Group together potted plants to increase humidity, which may be lacking in the colder months.  At night close shades to protect plants from extreme outdoor temperatures.  Or place a folded newspaper between the plants and the glass.

Plan some fun indoor gardening projects with your kids, such as planting a windowsill herb garden or collecting pinecones, seed pods, and unusual twigs to make thanksgiving decorations.  Or build a birdhouse or “plant” a garden using carrot tops, avocado pits, orange seeds, and other kitchen leftovers.

Other activities for November: try bonsai, the oriental art of shaping miniature container-grown trees; clean up rose beds; plant amaryllis and paperwhites for bloom during the December holidays.

1. Make “action” notes. Before you forget what plants should be divided, what should be moved and where, and what you need to do to certain plants next year, write it down now.

2. Should perennials be cut back now? It depends. If you normally get little snow, you may want to leave them until spring, so the stems can trap the snow. If you have perennials with attractive winter interest such as Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’ or ornamental grasses, you may wish to leave them for winter effect. Some seedheads, such as Black-eyed Susan, may provide food for birds. If your perennials are diseased, you may wish to cut them back and destroy–don’t compost–the diseased stems and leaves.

Often gardeners in cold climates with short seasons have more time for cutting back in the fall than spring. When cutting back, leave a couple of inches of stems to help trap the snow.  If cutting back tall ornamental grasses such as Eulalia (Miscanthus), cut back a foot or more above the ground as this part of the shoot often has next year’s growth.

3. Roses. Many gardeners have questions on overwintering these, and for more detailed information should consult other articles, books, and their garden centers on this subject. Some tips include making sure grafted roses have the graft union below ground a couple of inches, or are covered with soil; mulch only with soil if you have rodents, not with straw; and cut back only to top of mulch. Or plant some of the many hardy shrub roses.  There are both new and old varieties on the market that require little or no protection.

4. Cover or mulch. This depends in part on your philosophy. Mine is that perennials should be able to survive with their summer mulch–a couple inches of bark mulch, shredded leaves, or similar material–or else placed in a warmer microclimate site, put in pots to winter indoors, or just not grown. Other gardeners don’t feel this way, or have special perennials, in which case the rule would be to add more winter mulch.

A foot or more of loose organic material such as straw can be used. Don’t use hay as it often contains weed seeds. And don’t use such mulch if you have rodents, as this only provides them with a home with your perennials as their winter food supply. Apply mulches late, around mid-November in the North, as perennials need some cold to harden properly.  Remove mulches as early as possible or when snow melts.  In the North, this should be done at least by April 1 and during a period of several warm days. Leaving mulch on too long will lead to tender and weak growth as perennials grow under the mulch.

If you don’t mulch your perennials during the growing season, you may want to provide a light layer of a couple inches of mulch for winter protection as mentioned above. This will provide 5 to 10 degrees of temperature protection to the soil in fall and spring, which may mean life or death for certain perennials at a time when they are least hardy. And even a light layer of mulch helps prevent wide temperature fluctuations with freezing and thawing, which breaks roots. Such organic mulches, of course, will break down, adding vital organic matter to the soil, and help conserve moisture and reduce weeds during the growing season.

5. Make new beds. If you want new perennial beds by spring, fall is a good time to start. If in hay, cut back low now. For sodded areas, strip off sod with a rented sod cutter. Or you can use a herbicide to kill the grass. Or you can just cover with black plastic, and most of the grass will be dead and composted by spring, and fairly easy to plant. Test soil and add lime now if needed.

Other items on my fall checklist include checking and labeling plants as needed, putting out traps for rodents, digging tender summer bulbs, checking fall fertility and adding compost, and making cages for next year’s tall perennials.

Dahlias range in color from white and yellow to orange, pale pink, lavender, and red with blooms from half an inch to a foot and a half in size. Flowers may be pompoms or pinwheels with single or double petals that are flat, curved, or rolled into tubes. A long-lasting cut flower, it makes a great addition to any garden.

The dahlia, a relative of the daisy, was first cultivated by Aztec botanists in Mexico. In the early 1500s it was discovered by Spanish explorers who brought this tuberous plant back to Europe.

Interestingly, they had the same problem with storage of the tubers as do many modern-day gardeners. The genus Dahlia gets its name from an 18^th-century Swedish botanist, Andreas Dahl.

The dahlia became a favorite in the gardens of working class Europeans after being distained by the upper class as being too flamboyant for their carefully manicured gardens.

However, it gained prominence in the mid-1800s after a devastating blight wiped out the potato crop in France as it was thought to be a good substitute for this starchy vegetable. Unfortunately, it was not, but it soon became popular in gardens both for its flowers and interesting foliage.

Although a perennial plant, in northern climates dahlias are treated as annuals. They are planted in the spring as soon as the soil has warmed up, then lifted and stored in the fall after the first hard frost.

Dahlias do best in a sunny spot with light, fertile, well-drained soil. If you have heavy clay soil, work in a two- to four-inch layer of well-rotted manure or compost a few weeks before planting.

Add fertilizer–about a quarter pound of a balanced fertilizer like 5-10-5 per ten square feet of garden or according to soil test results–incorporating it into the soil well. With a slow release, complete fertilizer no further applications are needed.

Wait until the danger of frost has past before planting the tubers. Plant about four to six inches deep, laying them horizontally on their sides, with roots down and buds facing upward. Cover with two inches of soil, adding more as shoots appear.

Space smaller varieties two to three feet apart, larger ones three to four feet. Larger plants also will require support as they grow. To avoid damage to the roots later on, drive a stake into the ground now, a few inches from where you plan to plant each tuber. As the plants grow, tie the stalks to the stakes.

Most dahlias will bloom in late summer and early fall. Some of the newer and bedding varieties are relatively short, a foot or so high, and generally bloom repeatedly through season. Pinch off spent blooms to encourage continual flowering. Once frost has blackened the foliage, it’s time to dig them up and store until the following spring.

With a sharp knife, cut the stalks at a height of about a foot. Then carefully dig up the clumps, taking care not to injure or spear the tubers. Trim the stalks to a few inches. Shake off the loose dirt and separate the tubers, allowing them to dry for a few days.

Brush off the remaining dirt, then place in a shallow box containing sand and peat moss. Label and store in a dry, cool place. The ideal storage temperature is 40 degrees F.

Throughout the fall and winter check the stored tubers regularly for signs of rot or mold. Spray soft or shriveled tubers with warm water, then let dry before returning to storage. Bruised or rotted tubers will need to be discarded.

The most common problem in choosing roses is trying to grow all the latest hybrids you see advertised in the glossy magazines and catalogs. Most of these are modern hybrids, and are only marginally hardy in the warmest parts  or warm microclimates on your property.

These small areas of warmer temperatures might be in front of a south facing wall or side of a building, or on a south facing slope.

Of the so-called “modern roses” (those developed since what many consider the first hybrid tea rose ‘La France’ in 1867), the ones most commonly seen in garden centers and through mail order include hybrid teas, floribundas, grandifloras, miniatures, and climbers.

Another five classes of roses are in the “modern” group, of which the shrub and rugosa hybrids are often hardy. Even though these latter ones were first developed in the late 1800s, many selections have been developed since then which are available now.

Of these selections, several series are seen in our area. The Explorers were developed in Ottawa at the Experiment Station and are named after famous Canadian explorers. The Parkland series was developed in western Canada at the Morden Experiment Station and carries names such as Morden Centennial.

The Meidiland series is from France, and usually has “Meidiland” in the name, such as Meidiland Pink. Then there are the David Austin English garden roses, beautiful and fragrant and fairly resistant to diseases, but most in this series are not hardy in most of Vermont.

The 15 or so classes of “old garden roses” mainly were developed prior to 1867. These classes and groupings of old and modern roses may differ slightly with each rosarian (or rose fancier) and reference. Of these, the ones that are most hardy for our area include the albas, gallicas, damasks, and centifolias.

Roses also owe their continued popularity in part to royalty. The French Empress Josephine made roses fashionable for everyone in the 19^th century by planting a beautiful palace rose garden of all the varieties available at the time.

Roses do best in full sun and well-drained, slightly acidic (6 to 6.5 pH) soil. The key is to keep them well watered and in well-drained soil as they don’t like waterlogged soils. This is essential for healthy growth. However, once planted, they will survive, and continue to thrive, in the same bed, providing you add fertilizer on a regular basis. The latter is especially critical to the health of the plants.

Adding organic matter to the soil is always beneficial, but in the case of roses it may not be enough. Unless the soil is very fertile, you will need to add rose fertilizer (check your local garden center for this product) per directions on the label. You also may combine organic products such as seaweed or fish emulsion with a controlled release fertilizer (usually non-organic). Hybrid tea roses usually require higher soil fertility than shrub types.

Although early spring is generally the best time to plant roses in cold climates, roses may be successfully planted in late summer or early autumn as long as they are protected over winter. Do not plant roses after the first few weeks of fall as there won’t be enough time for most to get rooted.

Spring, not fall, is the time to plant bare-root roses, just as or before buds are beginning to break. Spring is, in fact, the only time you usually can get them either through mail order from specialty rose catalogs or on-line ordering on the Internet.

For best results, choose hardy varieties. “Modern” hybrids (those developed after 1867) generally aren’t hardy except in warm microclimates , but ask your local garden center experts what they would recommend for your location.

In research trials at the University of Vermont Research Center in S. Burlington (U.S. Department of Agriculture hardiness zone 4b), conducted over a three-year period (1998-2000), Leonard Perry took a look at several types of shrub roses. This class of roses is generally more hardy than most hybrid teas, floribundas, grandifloras, miniature, and climbing roses, and thus, more practical for Vermont.

The period of his study included both wet weather and a drought (summer 1999).

To plant roses, dig as large a hole as possible, but at least two times as wide and across as the roots. Amend the backfill with up to half compost, peat moss, or similar organic matter. Add a tablespoon or two of phosphorus depending on the size of the hole at planting. Set the plant in the hole and spread out the roots evenly. Make sure the bud graft (the lower, swollen area on most roses) is covered with at least two inches of soil.

If planting bare root, mound the soil over most of the canes to help prevent buds and canes from drying out and suckers from forming below the bud graft. Staking is generally not needed, but climbing types will need to be trained to travel up a wall or trellis.

To encourage vigor, roses need to be pruned, but wait until spring as pruning in fall may cause dieback or allow diseases to enter wounds with slow, or no, healing of the wounds. Diseased or dead wood should be removed, however. Adding fresh horse manure at this time is a good way to add nutrients to the soil, but the main purpose in fall is to mound over canes to protect overwinter. Mice won’t live in this!

Fall-planted roses will need winter protection their first year, as do less hardy varieties every year. Use rose cones, mounding one foot or more of mulch, such as straw, around the base if rodents aren’t a problem. Otherwise, use soil. Apply late in the season, usually around hanksgiving. Climbing roses, if not hardy, will need to be removed from the supports and laid on the ground and covered as recommended above. Mulches should be removed in the spring as soon as the snow has melted.