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The following calendar is broken down by month with helpful information about tasks to do around your garden and incoming arrivals at our Nursery. Placerville is in Sunset Zone 7 and the tasks below pertain to that zone. Click here to find out your zone.
Click a season or scroll down to read more.
December
- Apply second dormant spray on fruit trees (see Nov. for first spray). See us for handouts and supplies.
- Shop for bareroot roses arriving in mid-December.
- Apply pre-emergent herbicides to prevent weeds.
- Remove foil from gift plants to prevent root rot.
- Move live Christmas trees indoors to decorate. Do not leave inside for more than 10 days.
- Apply iron to yellowing Gardenias, Azaleas, other acid-loving plants, and Citrus.
January
- Move live Christmas trees outdoors to a patio. Move plant gradually, allowing it to re-acclimate to the cold.
- Shop for bareroot fruit and shade trees, berries, vegetables, roses, and other ornamentals. See us for a complete list.
- Prune fruit trees as needed.
- Plant vegetable and flower seeds indoors to sow for Spring.
- Plant winter annuals.
February
- Apply third and final dormant spray on fruit trees (just before bud break).
- Fertilize annuals and perennials with a low nitrogen starter fertilizer, or rose and flower food.
- Plant summer blooming bulbs.
- Fertilize trees planted this year just after bloom.
- Start roses on fungus prevention spray schedule.
- Spread wood ashes lightly around lilacs to benefit growth and aid blooming.
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March
- Put yellow jacket traps out early to trap the Queen.
- Fertilize roses, evergreens, fruit trees, and berries.
- Prepare new lawn beds 6” deep. See us for a lawn preparation handout.
- Shop for summer blooming bulbs and spring blooming shrubs.
- Spray roses with fungicide to prevent black spot and mildew. See us for a rose care handout.
April
- April 15th is the estimated last frost date for the Placerville area; El Dorado Hills estimated date is April 1st; and Pollock Pines is May 1st.
- Plant or divide perennials.
- Sow annual flowers and warm season vegetables outdoors after April 15th.
- Spray for oak worms. See us for spray choices.
- Set out traps or bait for earwigs and snails.
- Fertilize spring blooming shrubs, ground covers, and conifers.
- Prune spring blooming shrubs (lilacs, forsythia, etc.) immediately after bloom.
- Thin fruit trees and fertilize. See us for products and handouts.
- Set out codling moth traps in your apple trees. See us for a disease and spray schedule.
- Apply borer spray and whitewash trunks on fruit trees and flowering cherries.
May
- Plant warm-season vegetable seeds or starts.
- Check roses for aphids. Hose off plants and feed roses with systemic fertilizer if needed.
- Mow lawns. Don’t remove more than 1/3rd the height.
- Shop for summer annual flowers and perennials.
- Fertilize container plants with a time-release fertilizer.
- Check and repair irrigation systems.
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June
- Feed azaleas, camellias, gardenias, and rhododendrons with azalea or an acid food.
- Feed lawns with Endure 15-15-15, Dr. Earth organic lawn fertilizer, or a slow release nitrogen lawn fertilizer.
- Feed perennials and shrubs that have extensive bloom times with 16-16-16 or all purpose Dr. Earth Organic.
- Annual check-up on mowers and trimmers.
- White wash fruit tree trunks to prevent sunburn. Use a light colored interior latex paint mixed with 50% water or Tree Trunk White.
- Apply mulch around shrubs to reduce evaporation.
- Cut back berry vines after fruiting to make room for vigorous young growth. See us for a berry handout.
July
- Harvest vegetables regularly. Old fruit left on the plant will inhibit reproduction.
- Water early in the day to prevent disease.
- Spray caterpillars with Take Down or Green Light Spinosad, available at the nursery.
August
- Plant second wave of beets, carrots, radishes, etc.
- Plan your fall garden. Start fall vegetables indoors (broccoli, cauliflower, lettuce, etc.)
- Set melons and pumpkins on a board to prevent rot.
- Deep water trees and large shrubs.
- Give houseplants a bath outside in the fresh air. Keep in the shade.
- Summer prune fruit trees. See us for a handout and check our newsletter for summer pruning clinic dates.
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September
- Time for lawn repair: rough up bare spots with a rake, scratch grass seed, cover with mulch, and keep moist.
- Prune berry bushes to the ground when they finish fruiting. Train up new canes.
- Plant snapdragons, pansies, peas, lettuce, cole crops, and root crops.
- Shop for spring blooming bulbs. Dig up and divide overgrown spring flowering bulbs. Amend your soil (mix in compost), add bulb food, then replant.
- Fertilize fruit trees with 16-20-0, 16-16-16, or Dr. Earth All Purpose Organic fertilizer before leaf drop. See us for a fertilizer handout.
- Pre-book bareroot fruit and nut trees. Stop by for a list of what we will carry.
October
- Shop for plants with fall color.
- Sow wild flower seeds for spring and summer bloom.
- Apply pre-emergent for weed control.
- Aerate, renovate, reseed, and fertilize lawns before the cold weather.
- Apply iron to azaleas, rhododendrons, gardenias, camellias, citrus, and conifers.
- Fertilize spring blooming shrubs, perennials, trees, and bulbs with super phosphate, bone meal, or 0-10-10 for abundant spring blooms.
- Take advantage of the cooler weather and rains by planting shrubs and trees, or transplanting existing plants.
- Protect citrus from winter frost. See us for Citrus Care handout.
November
- Plant spring blooming bulbs. Be sure to amend the soil and to use bulb food or bone meal.
- Plant garlic and onion sets. Use starter fertilizer or vegetable food.
- Flush drip-irrigation systems with water to clear sediment. Then drain the lines to avoid winter freezing.
- After leaf drop, apply first dormant spray (dormant oil and copper). Come in for our informational handouts.
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