Wondering what you should plant in November if you live in Tucson? This seasonal planting guide is your manual for November gardening!
November is a great month in the low desert as temperatures cool off and plants which don't tolerate much heat begin to thrive.
Days are shorter and frosts are coming, if they aren't here already.
Overnight average lows drop from 55F to 45F during November.
There's still plenty of sunlight and enough warmth for all your cool season plants to take off, though!
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Do Warm Season Crops Grow in Tucson in November?
In the Sonoran desert, you may still have warm season crops such as tomatoes, summer squash, and peppers in early November.
The first frost will soon be the end for those. The good news is that the frost will free up more space for more winter plantings like lettuce and brassicas.
Timing the frost can be tricky, but you can always chop down warm season crops whenever you need the space.
You'll probably end up just planting around any lingering warm season veggies until you're ready to cut them down. That works great, especially if you're starting seedlings indoors all winter and are ready with transplants to go out as warm season crops succumb to the cold.
Succession Planting in Tucson as Frost Approaches
Often I like to start a second full round of planting in November of the same crops that I seeded in October - with more focus on the spaces beneath my lingering warm season crops. As squash comes out, broccoli can be popping up.
As tomatoes blacken and are chopped down, kale seedlings can be growing beneath. Lettuce can germinate in the shade under your basil as it flowers and finally dies. Onions can grow beneath your pepper plants which will soon be leaving this realm.
November feels like it's all about timing and spacing - the transition season when warm crops linger but cool crops must be planted. There's fun to the challenge, like a game of Tetris to fit all the plants in.
I focus on my indoor seed-starting through November and into the winter, so I always have something ready to go out. As one crop finished or dies, another seedling is hardened off and ready to transplant into the field.
These will grow for 2 or 3 more weeks before going out into the field
Planting
Cover Crops & Forage
1st Half of November
BROADCAST IN FIELD:
Common Vetch, Chickpea, Crimson Clover, Fava Bean, Forage Pea, Forage Radish, Flax, Hairy Vetch, Lentil, Oats, Oilseed Radish, Red Clover, Rye, Tillage Radish, Sweet Clover, Sweet Pea, Wheat, Winter Pea
DIRECT SOW / DRILL IN FIELD:
Common Vetch, Chickpea, Fava Bean, Forage Pea, Forage Radish, Hairy Vetch, Lentil, Oilseed Radish, Tillage Radish, Sweet Pea, Winter Pea
2nd Half of November
BROADCAST IN FIELD:
Common Vetch, Chickpea, Crimson Clover, Fava Bean, Forage Pea, Forage Radish, Flax, Hairy Vetch, Lentil, Oats, Oilseed Radish, Red Clover, Rye, Tillage Radish, Sweet Clover, Sweet Pea, Wheat, Winter Pea
DIRECT SOW / DRILL IN FIELD:
Common Vetch, Chickpea, Fava Bean, Forage Pea, Forage Radish, Hairy Vetch, Lentil, Oilseed Radish, Tillage Radish, Sweet Pea, Winter Pea
Herbs
1st Half of November
SOW INDOORS:
Anise, Borage, Caraway, Chives, Cilantro, Dill, Fennel, Lemon Balm, Marjoram, Mint, Oregano, Parsley, Rosemary, Sage, Tarragon, Thyme
DIRECT SOW:
Anise, Borage, Caraway, Chives, Cilantro, Dill, Fennel, Lemon Balm, Marjoram, Mint, Oregano, Parsley, Rosemary, Sage, Tarragon, Thyme
HARDEN OFF & TRANSPLANT TO FIELD:
Anise, Borage, Caraway, Chives, Cilantro, Dill, Fennel, Lemon Balm, Marjoram, Mint, Oregano, Parsley, Rosemary, Sage, Tarragon, Thyme
2nd Half of November
SOW INDOORS:
Anise, Borage, Caraway, Chives, Cilantro, Dill, Fennel, Lemon Balm, Marjoram, Mint, Oregano, Parsley, Rosemary, Sage, Tarragon, Thyme
DIRECT SOW:
Anise, Borage, Caraway, Chives, Cilantro, Dill, Fennel, Lemon Balm, Marjoram, Mint, Oregano, Parsley, Rosemary, Sage, Tarragon, Thyme
HARDEN OFF & TRANSPLANT TO FIELD:
Anise, Borage, Caraway, Chives, Cilantro, Dill, Fennel, Lemon Balm, Marjoram, Mint, Oregano, Parsley, Rosemary, Sage, Tarragon, Thyme
Fruits & Vegetables
In November you can continue planting any and all cool season crops, except that the window for garlic and onions now closes.
1st Half of November
SOW INDOORS:
Artichoke, Arugula, Asparagus, Beets, Bok Choy, Broccoli, Brussel Sprouts, Cabbage, Cardoon, Cauliflower, Celery, Chickpea, Chicory, Chives, Collards, Endive, Escarole, Fava Bean, Fennel, Green Onions, Horseradish, Kale, Kohlrabi, Lentil, Lettuce, Mâche (Cornsalad), Mizuna, Mustard, Napa Cabbage, Snap Peas, Snow Peas, Spinach, Swiss Chard
DIRECT SOW IN FIELD:
Artichoke, Arugula, Asparagus, Beet, Bok Choy, Broccoli, Brussel Sprouts, Cabbage, Carrots, Cardoon, Cauliflower, Celery, Chickpea, Chicory, Chives, Collards, Endive, Escarole, Fava Bean, Fennel, Garlic (From Cloves), Green Onions, Horseradish, Kale, Kohlrabi, Lettuce, Lentil, Mâche (Cornsalad), Mizuna, Mustard, Napa Cabbage, Onions (From Sets), Parsnip, Radish, Romanesco, Rutabaga, Snap Pea, Snow Pea, Spinach, Strawberries (from bare root), Swiss Chard, Turnip, Wheat
HARDEN OFF & TRANSPLANT TO FIELD:
Artichoke, Arugula, Bok Choy, Broccoli, Cardoon, Cauliflower, Collards, Chicory, Chickpea, Endive, Escarole, Fava Bean, Fennel, Kale, Kohlrabi, Leek, Lentil, Lettuce, Mâche (Cornsalad), Mizuna, Mustard, Napa, Onion (from seed), Snap Pea, Snow Pea, Romanesco, Spinach, Swiss Chard, Strawberry (from transplant)
2nd Half of November
SOW INDOORS:
Artichoke, Arugula, Asparagus, Bok Choy, Broccoli, Brussel Sprouts, Cabbage, Cardoon, Cauliflower, Celery, Chickpea, Chicory, Chives, Collards, Endive, Escarole, Fava Bean, Fennel, Green Onions, Horseradish, Kale, Kohlrabi, Lentil, Lettuce, Mâche (Cornsalad), Mizuna, Mustard, Napa Cabbage, Snap Pea, Snow Pea, Spinach, Swiss Chard
DIRECT SOW IN FIELD:
Artichoke, Arugula, Asparagus, Beet, Bok Choy, Broccoli, Brussel Sprouts, Cabbage, Cardoon, Carrots, Cauliflower, Celery, Chickpea, Chicory, Chives, Collards, Endive, Escarole, Fava Bean, Fennel, Garlic (From Cloves), Green Onions, Horseradish, Kale, Kohlrabi, Lettuce, Lentil, Mâche (Cornsalad), Mizuna, Mustard, Napa Cabbage, Parsnip, Radish, Romanesco, Rutabaga, Snap Pea, Snow Pea, Spinach, Strawberries (from bare root), Swiss Chard, Turnip, Wheat
HARDEN OFF & TRANSPLANT TO FIELD:
Artichoke, Arugula, Bok Choy, Broccoli, Cardoon, Cauliflower, Collards, Chicory, Chickpea, Endive, Escarole, Fava Bean, Fennel, Kale, Kohlrabi, Leek, Lentil, Lettuce, Mâche (Cornsalad), Mizuna, Mustard, Napa, Onion (from seed), Snap Pea, Snow Pea, Spinach, Romanesco, Swiss Chard, Strawberry (from transplant)
These can be transplanted out into the field anytime this month.
Grains, Seeds, & Cereals
1st Half of November
BROADCAST IN FIELD:
Quinoa
2nd Half of November
BROADCAST IN FIELD:
Quinoa
Flowers
1st Half of November
DIRECT SOW:
Alyssum, Bachelor Buttons, Calendula, Freesias, Hollyhock, Nasturtium, Sweet Pea
2nd Half of November
DIRECT SOW:
Alyssum, Bachelor Buttons, Calendula, Freesias, Hollyhock, Nasturtium, Sweet Pea
Harvesting
Produce
1st Half of November
Potato, Radish, Summer Squash, Turnip, Winter Squash, Zucchini
2nd Half of November
Potato, Radish, Summer Squash, Turnip, Winter Squash, Zucchini
warm season squash and potatoes still producing,
and cool season turnips and parsley starting to yield
Seed Saving
1st Half of November
Cucumber, Hot Pepper, Loofah, Melon, Summer Squash, Sweet Pepper, Tomato, Tomatillo, Winter Squash
2nd Half of November
Cucumber, Hot Pepper, Loofah, Melon, Summer Squash, Sweet Pepper, Tomato, Tomatillo, Winter Squash
Cut Flowers
1st Half of November
2nd Half of November
Weeding
Weeds to Pull
Spurge
More Tucson Planting Guides
Know any plants I missed for November in Tucson? I'd love to hear from you in the comments!
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