Get ready for Winter?

Welcome back to The ATXGardens Podcast! In this episode, landscape consultant and certified arborist Colleen Dieter shares exactly what to focus on in the second half of October to keep your Central Texas garden thriving.

This week, Colleen covers eco-friendly lawn care, transplanting do’s and don’ts, and what to plant now (perennials, roses, wildflowers) before the first freeze. She also answers a listener question about her “Everything Garden” experiment—what worked, what she’d change, and how to get lush results without high maintenance.

Whether you’re managing leaves, protecting tender plants from early cold snaps, or setting up your soil for winter success, this episode is packed with practical, local advice.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode

• Hold the pruners: why late October isn’t the time to trim trees, shrubs, or perennials
• Planting window: best timing for trees, shrubs, woody vines, and roses
• Leaf strategy: how to “leave the leaves” for wildlife while avoiding smothering plants
• Fruit trees: fall clean-up to reduce disease pressure next year
• Listener Mail: updates on the Everything Garden design (sheet-mulching wins, fewer species, seasonal mowing)
• Last call: perennials, bulbs, grasses, and cool-season veggies you can still plant now
• Freeze prep: simple steps to protect young and cool-season crops
• Annual color: swapping warm-season pots for pansies, violas, snapdragons, cyclamen
• Lawns: when to do the final (high-deck) mow and how to mulch with chopped leaves
• Wildflowers: realistic watering expectations in a dry fall
• What’s on deck: upcoming classes, festivals, and seed-sharing events across Central Texas

Links & Resources Mentioned

• Make an appointment or shop at http://ATXGardens.com
• Connect on Instagram @‌atxgardens_
• Maxicrop Liquid Seaweed https://amzn.to/4hbuSdh
• Antique Rose Emporium https://www.antiqueroseemporium.com/?srsltid=AfmBOorU423C6VIGcBmGKCxB0Yu27vZ_EO4D4bQgpU63NXp3y1OtzC57
• Xerces Society. https://www.xerces.org/
• Gloves: https://www.atxgardens.com/store-tools-and-accessories
• Horticulturati Episode: https://www.horticulturati.com/episodes/the-everything-garden
• Adjustable Leaf Rake: https://amzn.to/438ZzK6

Upcoming events:

• Oct 18 – Healing Roots & Wings Festival (Givens Park) – Organic Vegetable Gardening class 12–2
• Nov 1 – Central Texas Seed Savers Fall Festival Fundraiser (Greensleeves Nursery, Pflugerville) 5-8
• Nov 8 – Central Texas Seed Savers Annual Seed Swap (Austin Public Library – Central) 11-1
• Nov 8 – Garden Conservancy Open Days: Pollinator Paradise (Leah Churner)
• Nov 17 – Williamson County Master Gardeners: Tree Planting talk 6:30 pm

Find more on upcoming events.

Don’t forget to subscribe, leave a review, and share this episode with your fellow Central Texas gardeners!