November is when we recommend you turn off your irrigation controller due to freezing temperatures. For trees that still need water this month, hand water per the Fall Season Watering Recommendations. If you have turf, water for only one day per week. Remember that if it rains or snows more than ½ inch, count that day as one of your watering days and cut back on supplemental irrigation.
Lower temperatures and shorter days in the months of October and November mean less evaporation. Thus, less irrigation is required. Adjust your irrigation controller following the Fall Season Watering Recommendations below to keep your landscape healthy. If you have turf, water only one or two days per week, and two to four days a month for trees. For other type of plants see below for watering recommendations. Remember that if it rains more than half an inch, count that day as one of your watering days and cut back on supplemental irrigation. So far, customers’ water demand is 800 million gallons less compare to last year!
Exposure: Full Sun
Water: Medium
Height and Spread: 30’ x 20’
Blooming Season: Summer
Region: All Areas
Japanese Scholar tree is also known as the pagoda tree because it is planted in shrine gardens in Asia. It is a very arid adaptive shade tree with small compound glossy dark green leaves and honey-scented white flowers that bloom in summertime. A perfect sized tree for small patios and outdoor living spaces, it provides dappled shade, making these spaces comfortable during the summer.
However, this tree can be messy as it drops flowers, seed pods and leaves in late summer through the fall. The debris is easy to sweep away on smooth concrete surfaces, more difficult with flagstone patios. Try the cultivar ‘Regent’ for earlier blooming and a narrower canopy. Water weekly for the first few years of establishment during the hot summers. Once established, water once or twice a month to keep it healthy.
505Outside sat down with local landscape expert Wes Brittenham, Farm and Landscape Manager at Los Poblanos Historic Inn & Organic Farm, to chat about Fall maintenance tasks for Albuquerque gardens. At Los Poblanos, Wes oversees all growing things on their 25 acres, from the historic gardens to the newer more xeric and multi-functional landscapes, as well as the kitchen garden and the fields of lavender.
Wes has noticed many homeowners with traditional landscaped yards keep them highly pruned with perfectly trimmed rounded plants free and clear of leaf litter and debris. Over the last 15 years, as homeowners have made the shift to xeriscape landscapes (aka desert friendly) he’s noticed they haven’t shifted their maintenance regimens. They should.
Xeriscape landscapes don’t require the rigorous maintenance that traditional landscapes do, so he’s been teaching homeowners to “get over the tidiness!” He wants homeowners to embrace the shape of native plants and, in general, do less yard work. Especially in the Fall.
When asked what homeowners can do to prepare their landscapes for winter, he gave us a short list of surprisingly simple to-dos:
With over four decades of experience, Wes’s advice is extremely useful for local homeowners. Efficiency is key, so use his three simple tips for a great fall and winter landscape and minimal yard work this Fall.
Expert: Wes Brittenham, Farm and Landscape Manager at Los Poblanos Historic Inn & Organic Farm
September is still hot but the days are getting shorter. Follow the Fall watering recommendations below. Remember that if it rains more than a half inch, count that day as one of your watering days and cut back on supplemental irrigation.
Follow the Fall Watering Recommendations below for your landscape.
