What to Do in Your Central Texas Garden (Oct. 15–31): Last-Chance Fall Planting
Late October is one of the best times to be outside in a Central Texas garden. Cooler temperatures mean there’s still plenty of time to plant trees, cool-season vegetables, herbs, bulbs, and perennials—but there are also a few important things you should stop doing as plants begin preparing for winter.
In this episode of the ATXGardens Podcast, Colleen shares what to plant and what to avoid in the second half of October, answers a listener question about controlling an aggressive trumpet vine, explains why fruit tree leaves should be treated differently from other fallen leaves, and shares an important late-season lawn care tip that can help reduce winter weeds. Plus, she explains how Central Texans can help grow more native trees through the Seed to Tree Partnership.
🌳 Keep Planting Trees & Shrubs
It’s still planting season in Central Texas, and October is a great time to add trees and shrubs to your landscape.
Colleen especially recommends native fruit trees in the Prunus genus, including:
Escarpment black cherry
Mexican plum
Chickasaw plum
Cherry laurel
These native trees provide important habitat and food for Central Texas wildlife. Butterflies and moths lay eggs on Prunus species, providing caterpillars that birds can feed to their babies. They’re also among the earlier plants to bloom in spring, providing food for pollinators emerging after winter.
Move Plants That Have Outgrown Their Space
Fall is also a great time to transplant woody plants. If you’re constantly trimming a shrub because it blocks a walkway, covers a window, or simply doesn’t fit its location anymore, consider moving it somewhere it has room to reach its mature size instead.
Stop Pruning & Fertilizing Woody Plants
Put down the pruning shears! Pruning stimulates new growth, but right now trees and shrubs need to slow down and prepare for winter.
Avoid pruning or fertilizing woody plants in late October and allow them to begin moving naturally toward dormancy.
🍂 What Should You Do With Fallen Leaves?
If leaves are falling onto your lawn, run over them with your lawnmower to chop them into smaller pieces so they don’t form a thick layer that blocks sunlight from reaching the grass.
If mowing doesn’t break them down sufficiently, rake them up instead.
However, leaves that fall underneath shade trees, ornamental trees, and into flower beds can generally stay where they are and act as natural mulch. Fruit tree leaves are a different story—which we’ll get to below!
🌿 How Do You Get Rid of Trumpet Vine?
A listener named Carrie wrote in with a question about an aggressive trumpet vine (Campsis radicans) growing along a shared fence.
Trumpet vine is native to Texas and can be valuable for butterflies and hummingbirds—but it is an extremely vigorous woody vine that can become problematic in a residential landscape. Its roots and stems can spread aggressively, and it can even find its way into pipes.
Can You Completely Eradicate Trumpet Vine?
Complete eradication may not be realistic because trumpet vine can return from its extensive root system and from seeds remaining in the landscape.
Instead, Colleen suggests several ways to manage it:
Cut it down during fall as plants begin moving toward winter dormancy.
Mow new growth regularly when the location allows.
If there are only one or two main trunks, cut them down and cover the area with an upside-down black bucket to completely block sunlight.
Check underneath the bucket regularly and remove any new growth.
Consider cutting the vine completely to the ground once or twice a year to control its size rather than trying to eliminate it entirely.
Use a reciprocating saw for particularly large woody stems.
Sometimes even a native plant can simply be the wrong plant for the location.
🍊 Late October Fruit Tree Care
It’s time to help fruit trees slow down for winter.
Stop fertilizing citrus trees now and wait until early March to begin feeding them again. Colleen also recommends having your soil tested approximately every three years, particularly for fruit trees and vegetable gardens that require plenty of nutrients.
Don't Leave Fruit Tree Leaves on the Ground
Unlike leaves from most shade and ornamental trees, fallen fruit tree leaves should be removed.
Fruit tree debris can harbor pests and diseases, so rake up fallen leaves or collect them using a lawnmower with a bag attachment. Colleen recommends putting those leaves into your municipal compost collection rather than your home compost pile.
Regular tree leaves, on the other hand, can remain beneath trees and in garden beds where they provide natural mulch.
🌸 Last Call for Perennials, Bulbs & Grasses
You can still plant perennials, succulents, ornamental grasses, and bulbs in late October, but the planting window is beginning to close.
Try to get new plants established for at least a couple of weeks before your first freeze.
Some of Colleen’s favorite bulbs for Austin and Southern gardens include:
Schoolhouse lilies
Native rain lilies
Native Drummond oxalis
Texas ditch lilies
Dutch irises
You can also continue dividing and transplanting existing perennials, grasses, succulents, and bulbs.
🥕 Grow Your Own Food at Captain Peña Community Garden
If you don’t have enough space to garden at home—or you’d simply like to garden alongside other people—the Captain Peña Community Garden in Oak Hill currently has garden plots available.
Gardeners can grow fresh food while sharing tools and seeds, learning from experienced gardeners, and practicing regenerative agriculture. The garden also features a pond and native plants contributed by Central Texas Plant Rescuers.
🥦 What to Plant in Your Central Texas Vegetable Garden
October is officially cool-season vegetable planting time in Central Texas, which means you can fill your garden with crops that will continue growing through the cooler months.
Plant as Transplants
Artichokes
Broccoli
Brussels sprouts
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Collards
Leeks
Plant Directly From Seed
Fava beans
Onions
Beets
Turnips
Carrots
Kale
Kohlrabi
Lettuce
Mustard greens
Swiss chard
Arugula
Radishes
Dandelions
Chicory
Radicchio
Endive
Late October is your last chance to plant fava beans, so get those seeds into the ground before November.
Spinach can also be planted once temperatures and soil have cooled sufficiently. Hot soil can prevent spinach seeds from germinating, so don’t rush it if Central Texas is still experiencing unusually warm weather.
🧄 October Is Garlic Planting Time
Garlic is easy to grow, doesn’t require much space, and can grow throughout the winter and spring before being harvested around June.
Break a head of garlic into individual cloves and plant each clove with the pointed side facing up.
Even grocery-store garlic can grow, but Colleen recommends choosing organically grown garlic so it hasn’t been treated with a growth inhibitor that prevents sprouting.
🌿 Plant Your Cool-Season Herbs
Now is the time to transition your Central Texas herb garden to cool-season varieties.
Plant from seed or small plants:
Cilantro
Feverfew
Dill
Parsley
Calendula
Chamomile
You can also plant or divide perennial herbs, including:
Garlic chives
Oregano
Thyme
Sage
Mint
Lemon balm
If friends have established perennial herbs, fall is a great time to swap divisions and add new varieties to your garden.
🌱 One Important Fall Lawn Care Tip
If you still have a lawn, consider top-dressing it with about ¼ inch of compost.
Spread the compost lightly and rake out any clumps that could block sunlight. Colleen prefers poultry compost because its higher nitrogen content can benefit plants grown primarily for their leaves.
Adding compost does more than provide nutrients—it also introduces beneficial microorganisms that break down organic material and help improve soil structure, moisture retention, and aeration.
Don't Mow Your Lawn Too Short!
As you approach your final mowing of the season, put your mower on its highest setting.
Cutting grass too short before winter can expose sensitive portions of the plant to cold temperatures, creating stress and potentially leaving more open space for winter weeds.
Keeping your lawn taller through winter can help protect the grass while making it harder for weeds to move in.
💙 Last Chance to Plant Bluebonnets
Have bluebonnet or other spring wildflower seeds sitting around?
Get them planted!
Late October is the end of the fall planting window for bluebonnets and other spring-blooming wildflowers. The seedlings need the winter months to grow and prepare for their spring show.
For Colleen’s tried-and-true bluebonnet planting method, go back a couple of episodes for the full tutorial.
🌳 Help Grow the Next Generation of Central Texas Trees
For this episode’s activism segment, Colleen highlights the Seed to Tree Partnership between Central Texas Seed Savers and TreeFolks.
The program collects seeds from locally adapted native trees. Volunteers gather, clean, and prepare the seeds, TreeFolks grows them in its nursery, and eventually those trees are planted throughout Central Texas.
If you have native trees on your property or know where they grow in your neighborhood, you may be able to help by collecting seeds—including seeds from native walnut species—and contributing them to the program.
🔗 Resources, Products & Organizations Mentioned
Book a consultation with Colleen: http://atxgardens.com/
🌼 Stay Connected
For more Central Texas gardening advice, seasonal planting tips, and sustainable landscaping guidance, visit http://ATXGardens.com and follow Colleen on Instagram @ATXGardens_.
