Gardeners Checklist: Here Is What to Do on the Week of Nov. 18

By Ron Kujawski

* Buy and pot up some amaryllis bulbs. Use pots with top diameters that are just a little larger than the diameters of the bulbs. Leave the top third of each bulb exposed above soil level. If growing amaryllis bulbs for yourself, begin watering right after potting. However, you may want to set aside a few of the potted bulbs without watering. These will make great last-minute holiday gifts if Aunt Tilly, Uncle Stash or often unnoticed Waldo should appear at your door.

* Carefully inspect potted herbs, especially those that spent the summer outdoors. Outbreaks of spider mites, aphids and mealy bug often occur on potted herbs at this time of year. Applying harsh pesticides to herbs is out of the question since we use herbs in cooking almost every day. Yet, I have an aversion to tossing mite or insect infested snippets of herbs into my salads, sauces and other dishes. Soaking the snippets in a bowl of salted water will often get rid of the critters. However, if the plants are left untreated, they’ll die or become too heavily infested to use. So, I will spray these with insecticidal soap, keeping in mind that the sprayed plants should not be exposed to direct sunlight as this can damage or kill the plants (I speak from experience). After 10 or 15 minutes, I rinse the sprayed plants with a spray of clear water to remove soap residue.

* Start compiling a list of flower and vegetable seeds for next year’s gardens. It may seem early, but evaluation of plants and varieties grown this year should still be fresh in our minds. However, my memory banks begin to close with the holiday season. So, while I still have a pretty good idea of what I do and don’t want to grow again, I am perusing newly arrived seed catalogs and putting together my 2025 shopping list of seeds.

* Cut cost on next year’s seeds by saving packets of this year’s seeds. Typically, I save seed packets by putting them in a glass jar with a packet of dehydrating gel and place the jar in the fridge. This year, I am going to try something different: Seal the seed packets in plastic bags using the vacuum sealer my wife uses for preserving vegetables from the garden. The vacuum sealed bags take up less space in the fridge than do jars.

* Enhance the colors of ornamental gourds by coating them with a clear wax or clear shellac. If the gourds have been cured properly, they should last for months.

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Thanksgiving is easily my favorite holiday. There aren’t countless gifts to buy, nor extravagant decorations to put up, nor endless commercialism to endure. Yes, there is much cooking to do, but that task is shared among the many family members who will gather on Thanksgiving Day to give heartfelt thanks for all of our blessings. It’s a less complicated holiday, a reminder of the simple things that give us so much joy and satisfaction.

Ron Kujawski began gardening at an early age on his family's onion farm in upstate New York. Although now retired, he spent most of his career teaching at the UMass Extension Service. He serves on Berkshire Botanical Garden’s Horticulture Advisory Committee. His book, Week-by-Week Vegetable Gardener’s Handbook, is available here.