What It Really Means When Dark-Eyed Juncos Start Hopping Under Your North Carolina Feeder This Month

Small gray birds with white bellies are suddenly hopping around under your feeder, and you wonder why. They are dark-eyed juncos, and many North Carolina…

By Jasmine Hughes · Nov 2, 2026

What It Really Means When Dark-Eyed Juncos Start Hopping Under Your North Carolina Feeder This Month

Your Florida Plumeria Is Heading Into Winter Rest, and Here’s What to Do Before It Sleeps

How to Manage Mulch-Bed Edges to Reduce Rat and Tick Habitat in Central Texas

Your Florida Desert Rose May Be Slowing Down for Winter, and Here’s What It Needs This November

From the Garden

Growing your own fig tree is easier than you think, and getting these few basics right does most of the work

If your kale leaves are riddled with tiny holes this November, cabbage worms are still feeding underneath

Pruning last year’s fig branches can reduce your breba crop, whatever the season

Before You Rip Out That Boxwood Hedge, Try These California Natives That Stay Green on Half the Water

Your Christmas cactus blooms right on time for the holidays when you give it these 8 conditions starting this week

In Bloom

Could a Red-Tailed Hawk Be Hunting Gophers in Your California Yard This Winter?

Why Your Potted Meyer Lemon Drops Tiny Fruit When the Heater Starts: Clues to Check

Garden Spiders Strung Across Your California Yard This Fall Are Catching the Pests Chewing Your Winter Greens

Gardener's Selection

Carrots left in the ground under a thick leaf blanket taste sweeter after every frost, so stop rushing to dig them

Deer start stripping your shrubs and fall greens in November, and a few strong scents near the beds send them elsewhere

Blue Mistflower: A North Carolina Native That Brings Blue-Violet Color to Late-Season Beds

Dusky Pygmy Rattlesnakes in Florida Yards: How to Spot Them and Garden Safely

These California Vines Cover Your Fence in Green Without Cracking Wood or Pulling Off Stucco

The Potting Shed

Pecan Weevil in Central Texas: How Some Pecans Get Damaged From the Inside

These 7 November lawn habits quietly leave your grass thin and patchy come spring

Peace lilies brought in from the porch droop every afternoon indoors because the pot stays cold and wet

Why North Carolina Gardeners Who Lime Their Clay Now Get Greener Lawns and Gardens by Spring

Creeping Snowberry: The California Native Groundcover With Branches That Can Root as They Spread

Texas Vines That May Regrow After Cutting: Identify First, Then Choose a Control Plan

Daily checks and the right care may help your potted mum look good longer into the holiday season

The One Thing North Carolina Gardeners Do This Fall to Revive a Struggling Clematis by Spring

Fall Strawberry Runners: When to Cut Them and When to Keep Them

Frostweed: A Shade-Loving Texas Native That Flowers as Fall Arrives

Why Stored Garlic and Onions Sprout or Soften: Is Your Warm Counter a Factor?

When North Carolina Gardeners Should Really Fill the Bird Feeders for Winter, and Why Early Matters

Could Tarantulas Prey on Scorpions? What One Mexico Study Means for Central Texas Yards

When Garlic Needs Straw Cover to Stop Freeze-Thaw Heaving

Crimson Clover as a Winter Cover Crop for Southern Vegetable Beds

The Garden Almanac

Field Notes

Forsythia Suits Dormant Hardwood Cuttings in North Carolina, but Timing and Care Shape Success

This Texas Border Plant Keeps Squirrels Out of Your Central Texas Beds All Fall and Winter

Leaving your tomato cages and stakes out all winter carries blight spores straight into next year’s plants, so scrub them now

Butterflies Keep Flying Through Florida Winters, and These 7 Native Plants Keep Them Fed

Cold Snaps Are Coming, and These 7 Florida Natives Shrug Off Frost While Tropicals Turn to Mush

Check the Soil First: How Smart Watering Helps Protect Your Christmas Cactus Buds