October Landscape & Garden Tips for California in 2024

Fall is here! Temperatures are lower, the holidays are around the corner, leaves are beginning to turn bright colors, and right now is the best season to plant! The combination of cooler days and nights allows the soil to sit at the ideal temperature to promote root growth for all your trees and plants.  

This is why fall is the best time to plant new trees and plants. The roots of your new plants are able to grow and established best during this time of year. Autumn brings many benefits for your landscape as well as opportunities to protect against pests. Our nursery pros have compiled the best care tips and maintenance advice to ensure your landscape gets the most out of the fall months.  

In this article: 

1. Update Your Watering Schedule for Fall Temperatures 

2. Fall is the Best Time of Year to Plant in California

3. Fertilizing for Healthy Growth 

4. Tree Care, Pruning, and Trimming

5. Safeguard Your Landscape Against Garden Pests

Trees to Plant This October

5 Tips to Improve Your Landscape This October 

1. Update Your Watering Schedule for Fall Temperatures 

With the cooler evening and nighttime temperatures, now is the best time to check your watering system. The ground will not be drying as quickly as it was during the summer heat, which means your trees and plants will not need as frequent watering. How much should you be watering your plants during the fall then? 

How often you should water your trees and plants during the autumn months will depend on the types of trees and plants that are in your landscape. For many varieties, watering every other or every second day is enough, but the amount of water you use to hydrate your yard will always depend on the specific plant material in your landscape. For watering guides on your specific trees and plants, you can check out our list of care guides here! 

2. Fall is the Best Time of Year to Plant in California 

In California, there are many benefits of planting during the fall season that make it the best time to plant. Planting now gives your new trees, plants, or palms the best conditions to establish strong, healthy root systems before the spring and summer growing seasons. Planting citrus and fruit trees during the fall will provide you with the best opportunity for fruit this coming spring.

3. Fertilizing for Healthy Growth 

Fall is also the best time to fertilize everything in your yard after the summer months. All your trees, palms, shrubs, and other plants will take full advantage of the nutrients and fertilizers you use during the autumn season.  

We’ve custom formulated all our fertilizers and nutrient supplements specifically for our region to help everything in your landscape grow strong roots, flower better, and push lush new growth. You can pick up our entire line-up of fertilizers at any Moon Valley Nurseries Location. Additionally, if you’d like professional advice on how to use our Moon Products, we have many helpful video guides on our YouTube channel! 

4. Tree Care, Pruning, and Trimming 

After the summer, some of your trees and plants may be showing signs of stress. Now is the best time to trim off any dead or burnt branches from your landscape. It is important not to trim more than 1/3 of the tree or plant at any one time.  

Once you trim, be sure to water and add in your fertilizers and apply Super Charged Moon Juice™. Our Super Charged Moon Juice™ is like an energy drink for your plants, encouraging healthy root growth and helping them recover from the stresses of summer.  

5. Safeguard Your Landscape Against Pests

You’ll want to keep a lookout for pests, insects, and caterpillars in your landscape. This is the time of year when these hungry pests may find a way to your plants and can cause some damage if not treated early and correctly. 

If your plants have fallen victim to pests or caterpillars, here are some measures you can take to correct the problem: 

1. If your plants that have been attacked are mature, you can cut back any damaged portions of your plants. Isolate, bag, and dispose of cuttings.  
   
   
2. Use a systemic insecticide drench on all non-edible plants that are susceptible to insect attacks. Make sure to also apply the systemic drench to the surrounding plants to help reduce the likelihood of insects reinfesting your plants.  
   
   
3. Spray plants with proper topical pesticides to kill any remaining pests, further safeguard them from future infestations and allow your plants to begin recovering from any recent attacks.  
   
   
4. Fertilize with Moon Dust™ and Super Charged Moon Juice™ together to promote vigorous growth on newly treated plants. Healthy plants are your best defense against pest infestations. 

If you’ve been asking yourself, “what’s eating my plants?” then stop by any Moon Valley Nurseries location and speak with our nursery pros. We will equip you with the materials and knowledge to protect your yard from caterpillars and other pests. 

Trees to Plant This October

“Red Push” Chinese Pistache

• Chinese Pistache are an excellent low-maintenance shade tree with dense dark green foliage.
• Their leaves turn a vibrant red-orange color in the fall and the new growth has a bright red hue as it comes in, earning the tree's name, “Red Push”.
• They are very cold hardy, heat hardy, and love full sun. Chinese Pistache trees also become drought-tolerant when established.

Crape Myrtle

• Crape Myrtles are the best flowering trees for year-round color. Their large clusters of blooms appear from spring to early fall and they feature red, orange, and bright yellow autumn leaf colors
• Dependent on the variety, Crape Myrtles can flower in pink, purple, red, white, peach, and lavender colors.
• They love to be planted in full sun, making them perfect as an accent tree, focal point, tree for curb appeal, or any other purpose where you need year-round interest in your landscape.

Shumard Oak

• Shumard Oaks are a fast-growing shade tree that are perfect for use in a wide variety of landscape applications.
• They have a wide-spreading canopy and with thick, dense bright green foliage
• These Oaks develop rich, bright, red-colored leaves in the fall
• Shumard Oaks love full sun, are cold hardy, and become drought-tolerant once established.

Southern Live Oak

• Southern Live Oaks are hardy evergreen trees perfect for use as a shade tree, street tree, or a tree for privacy.
• They are extremely clean and easy to care for and are drought-tolerant when established.
• Live Oaks love to be planted in full sun, are cold-resistant, and can handle very windy conditions.
• Their dense, dark green foliage makes these Oaks great to use as shade trees, or plant them in rows to create a privacy screen.

Piru Queen Palm

• Our Piru Queen Palms possess fuller trunks and crowns than standard Queen Palms and are far more acclimated to desert regions.
• These are an excellent choice of palm for planting around pools, and they complement patios and outdoor seating areas with their beautiful tropical appearance.
• Their fuller crowns and excellent heat tolerance make our Piru Queen Palms an ideal palm tree to shade your landscape.
  
  

Fall is the perfect time to take care of your landscape and get everything looking healthy and growing strong. Proper fertilization, trimming, and the right watering will go a long way to adding more shade, privacy, year-round interest, and curb appeal to your landscape, as well as making it the perfect place to escape from the day-to-day. If you have questions or need more help, reach out to any of your local Moon Valley Nurseries locations or drop a comment below, and our expert nursery pros will be happy to help!