What to Do in November, by Zone
November does not end the gardening year. What you should do now depends mostly on whether your soil has frozen yet and which zone band you are in. Use the band below that matches your zone hub, and confirm timing with your local agricultural extension service before you plant anything late in the season.
Mapping note: the cited November sources use bands 4-5 / 6-8 / 9-10+, while this site uses 3-4 / 5-6 / 7-8 / 9-10, so the mapping below is approximate — zone 3 advice here is general cold-climate guidance, not a direct claim from the November source, and local extension advice overrides it. This guide links to plant guides already on this site; the plant guide remains the authority for that plant.
Zones 3-4: Cold
- Put the summer garden to bed: clear spent warm-season plants, add them to compost only if they are disease-free, and leave a light layer of leaves on beds as mulch where you can. Do not smother evergreen plants with leaves, and avoid a heavy wet leaf layer, which can rot the plants below over winter.
- Mulch perennial and vegetable beds to insulate roots against freeze-and-thaw cycles.
- After the first hard frost, lift tender bulbs you hope to keep for next season, dry them off, and keep them somewhere cool, dark and airy until spring.
- Garlic: the cited November garlic advice covers zones 4-5; zone 3 is colder, so November planting in zone 3 is unconfirmed by these sources — only consider it if your ground is still unfrozen and your local extension service confirms it, rather than assuming November still works.
- Move potted herbs indoors before hard frost, or start herbs on a sunny windowsill for winter use.
Zones 5-6: Cool
- Plant garlic and shallots now if your ground is not yet frozen; cover the bed with straw or leaves after planting.
- Plant spring bulbs before the soil freezes solid, for spring colour.
- Mulch beds and replenish compost with fallen leaves.
- Protect established cold-hardy greens such as spinach and kale under a cold frame or row cover; they grow slowly in deep winter and pick up again in spring. Do not start new sowings in zone 5 this late — the cited source assigns direct sowing to zones 6-8, so only in zone 6, and only if the ground is still unfrozen, may you still sow, and confirm with your local extension service first.
Zones 7-8: Warm
- Plant garlic, shallots and green onions now, and mulch after planting.
- Plant spring bulbs before the soil freezes.
- Direct-sow or protect cold-hardy greens such as spinach, kale and Swiss chard; a cold frame extends the season further.
- Roses: the sources disagree on fall rose pruning — one November guide trims long canes after a killing frost, while an extension guide advises against fall pruning because of winter dieback — so this guide gives no pruning instruction: mound soil or mulch around the base for winter protection, and ask your local extension service about pruning timing for your roses.
Zones 9-10: Hot / Mild
- November is still a planting month here: sow and plant cool-season crops, and keep watering while the weather stays dry.
- Plant spring bulbs only after checking with your local extension service whether bulbs need a winter chilling period in your area — do not assume a cold-zone bulb routine applies here, and do not assume artificial refrigeration is required.
- Mulch beds to conserve moisture, and move tender potted plants under cover on cold nights.
- Start herbs indoors or on a sunny windowsill for winter harvests.
Checklist (all zones)
- Find your zone band first
- Check whether your soil is frozen before planting anything
- Mulch bare soil
- Protect tender pots
- Confirm any late planting with your local extension service
General information only — local frost dates and soil conditions override this guide.