What to Do in the Garden in November (Cool-Climate US)

Finish the season

• Cut back perennials in November (UMN Extension Upper Midwest calendar).
• Finish planting spring-flowering bulbs; the window closes around mid-November.
• Complete vegetable-garden cleanup and compost disease-free debris.
• Keep watering until freeze-up; the UMN watering window runs through the end of November.
• Finish fall mulching of beds (October-November window), and mow one last time, shredding dry leaves with the mower.

Winter protection

• Erect hardware-cloth barriers against rabbits and rodents, and pull mulch a few inches back from trunks so it doesn't shelter them (Purdue Extension).
• Wrap the trunks of young, thin-barked trees to prevent frost cracking and sunscald.
• Mound soil over rose graft unions after several killing frosts, then add mulch.
• Mulch strawberries once plants are dormant but before temperatures fall below about 20 F, usually late November or early December.
• Remove dead, diseased, or damaged branches.

Indoors

• Cut back on houseplant water and fertilizer as growth slows; move plants to sunnier south- or west-facing windows.
• Pot spring bulbs and refrigerate them 10 to 13 weeks to force winter blooms indoors (Purdue Extension).
• Store any remaining tender bulbs in a cool, protected spot and check them for decay.

Sources

Reviewed 2026-07-18. We cite university Extension, government, and established horticultural sources — and never invent pesticide rates or dangerous treatments.

• University of Minnesota Extension — Upper Midwest home garden care schedule — Cut back perennials in November; spring bulbs through mid-November; watering through end of November; cleanup and mulch windows run through November
• Purdue University Extension — November garden calendar (Indiana Yard and Garden) — Rodent barriers, trunk wraps for frost cracking, rose mounding after killing frosts, strawberry mulch timing (dormant, before ~20 F), indoor bulb forcing, houseplant winter care
• University of Minnesota Extension — Lawn care calendar — Mowing season runs through early November; dormant lawn seeding possible mid-November

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