In the Garden

These 9 Set-and-Forget Shrubs Make a Florida Front Yard Look Finished With Almost No Work

Florida Gardening

These 9 Set-and-Forget Shrubs Make a Florida Front Yard Look Finished With Almost No Work

A front yard can look tidy without a weekly date with the hedge trimmer. The right shrubs add shape, color, and a welcoming feel while…

By Aria Moore F · Oct 26, 2026

Beets can last several months in storage when you give them cold, humid conditions

Ethan Brooks · Oct 26

Star Jasmine on California Fences: Why Sturdy Support Matters for This Fragrant White Vine

John Miller CA · Oct 26

Florida Gardening

Dwarf Yaupon Holly: A Tidy Native Shrub Option for Florida Foundation Beds

Aria Moore F · Oct 26

From the Garden

Growing notes from every corner of the plot.

Why Some North Carolina Yards Are Still Swarming With Yellowjackets This Late in the Fall

Why Some North Carolina Yards Are Still Swarming With Yellowjackets This Late in the Fall

You step onto the patio on a mild fall afternoon and a yellowjacket is already circling your drink. Next door, the neighbor is raking leaves…

By Jasmine Hughes · Oct 26

Florida Gardening

Hold Off on Cutting Selected Seed-Bearing Plants as Painted Bunting Season Nears in Florida

By Aria Moore F · Oct 26

Texas Gardening

What To Do When a Coyote Shows Up in Your Central Texas Yard This Fall, and What Never to Do

By Ella Brown T · Oct 26

Florida Gardening

Why Sandhill Cranes May Visit Florida Yards in Fall and Winter

By Aria Moore F · Oct 26

Why your garlic shoots are already poking up in late fall, and whether a hard freeze will hurt next summer’s bulbs

By Ethan Brooks · Oct 26

In Bloom

What's thriving right now.

Can You Still Plant Garlic in the South? Regional Windows and Bulb Size

Can You Still Plant Garlic in the South? Regional Windows and Bulb Size

By Ethan Brooks

Your fig tree still has hard green figs in late October, and here’s whether any of them will ripen

Your fig tree still has hard green figs in late October, and here’s whether any of them will ripen

By Ethan Brooks

Adjusting Citrus Watering to Soil Moisture and Rainfall in California

Adjusting Citrus Watering to Soil Moisture and Rainfall in California

By John Miller CA

Gardener's Selection

The guides worth your time — handpicked by our gardeners.

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How to Clean Tomato Cages and Stakes Before Storing Them for Next Season

How to Clean Tomato Cages and Stakes Before Storing Them for Next Season

By Ethan Brooks

Winged Insects Emerging From the Ground After Rain in California: What It Means for Your Home

Winged Insects Emerging From the Ground After Rain in California: What It Means for Your Home

By John Miller CA

Creeping Thyme for a Weedy Fence-Line Patch: A Groundcover Worth Trying in the Right Spot

Creeping Thyme for a Weedy Fence-Line Patch: A Groundcover Worth Trying in the Right Spot

By Ethan Brooks

What to Feed California Hummingbirds Instead of Sugar Water, and the One Thing That Harms Them

What to Feed California Hummingbirds Instead of Sugar Water, and the One Thing That Harms Them

By John Miller CA

Dormant Fig Cuttings Can Become Potted Plants by Spring, Depending on Timing and Roots

Plant of the Week

Dormant Fig Cuttings Can Become Potted Plants by Spring, Depending on Timing and Roots

A fig tree that has dropped its leaves is not finished for the year. The bare branches can give you free baby plants, if you...

By Ethan Brooks · Oct 26, 2026

The Potting Shed

Mature green tomatoes can ripen indoors in a paper bag before frost, with or without a banana

Mature green tomatoes can ripen indoors in a paper bag before frost, with or without a banana

When to Plant Pansies in North Carolina for Winter and Spring Color

Florida Gardening

Florida Citrus and Winter Cold: What to Do Before a Freeze Hits

The Shrubs California Homeowners Are Planting Along the Foundation to Keep Rats Away From the House

The Shrubs California Homeowners Are Planting Along the Foundation to Keep Rats Away From the House

Texas Gardening

Why the Rose Care You Do in Late Fall Decides How Hard Your Texas Roses Bloom Next Spring

Why your onion and shallot sets rot in the ground over winter, and the planting depth that saves them

Christmas Cactus With No Buds by Late October? Check Nighttime Light and Temperature

Christmas Cactus With No Buds by Late October? Check Nighttime Light and Temperature

The Strange Jungle-Looking Plants That Actually Thrive in North Carolina Yards

The Tough Shrubs That Actually Thrive on the Blazing West Side of Your California Home

Fresh Overnight Holes in Your Central Texas Lawn: Armadillo or Something Else?

Texas Gardening

Fresh Overnight Holes in Your Central Texas Lawn: Armadillo or Something Else?

Your amaryllis bulb sat dormant all summer, and late October may give it a chance at Christmas blooms

Skip Purple Fountain Grass Along Your North Carolina Driveway and Plant This Native That Comes Back Every Year

Why your pepper plants are still loaded with green fruit in late October, and how to ripen them before frost

Why your pepper plants are still loaded with green fruit in late October, and how to ripen them before frost

Texas Gardening

Practical Rosemary Care for Central Texas Winters: What Helps and What Does Not

Why Do Potted Peppers Lose Leaves or Blossoms After Moving Indoors for Winter?

Field Notes

Can a Fall Cut Hurt North Carolina Fig Trees Before Winter? What Really Causes Freeze-Back

Can a Fall Cut Hurt North Carolina Fig Trees Before Winter? What Really Causes Freeze-Back

You trimmed a fig branch in October, and now every cold forecast makes you wonder if you doomed the plant....

By Jasmine Hughes on Oct 26

What It Really Means When a Mockingbird Claims Your Central Texas Yard This Fall

Texas Gardening

What It Really Means When a Mockingbird Claims Your Central Texas Yard This Fall

A mockingbird perched on top of your berry shrub, singing and chasing off visitors, is hard to miss. Fall in...

By Ella Brown T on Oct 26

Why Your Potted Amaryllis Grows Tall Leaves but No Flower Stalk, and How a Rest May Help Time Blooms

Why Your Potted Amaryllis Grows Tall Leaves but No Flower Stalk, and How a Rest May Help Time Blooms

Your amaryllis stands tall with strap-like leaves, yet there is no flower stalk in sight. That can feel like a...

By Ethan Brooks on Oct 26

Why your fall lettuce leaves turn brown and slimy at the edges, and how to save the rest of the bed

Why your fall lettuce leaves turn brown and slimy at the edges, and how to save the rest of the bed

You walk out to the garden after a cold, rainy stretch and the lettuce edges are brown and slick. It...

By Ethan Brooks on Oct 26

Native Shrubs North Carolina Gardeners Are Planting Instead of Crape Myrtle, and They Look Better Year-Round

Native Shrubs North Carolina Gardeners Are Planting Instead of Crape Myrtle, and They Look Better Year-Round

Crape myrtles bloom hard for a few summer weeks, then spend the rest of the year as bare, chopped-off sticks...

By Jasmine Hughes on Oct 26

These Tough Native Plants Actually Thrive Against the Reflected Heat of Your Texas Driveway and Sidewalk

Texas Gardening

These Tough Native Plants Actually Thrive Against the Reflected Heat of Your Texas Driveway and Sidewalk

That strip of soil next to your driveway can get hotter than any other spot in your yard. Concrete soaks...

By Ella Brown T on Oct 26