November marks the height of summer — the time when gardens burst into life with colour, fragrance, and energy. It’s the perfect month to feed your fast-growing plants, keep lawns lush, and fill beds and containers with a variety of vibrant blooms. Whether you’re maintaining a veggie patch or styling your patio with container plants, now’s the time to make your space thrive.
🌸 Flowers in Season
Few flowers capture the essence of summer quite like Marigolds. They thrive in full sun, tolerate heat with ease, and reward little effort with bold orange, yellow, and red blooms. Give them a monthly feed to encourage abundant flowering, and choose from a variety of sizes and colours at your local nursery.
For a practical twist, try planting Marigold Tagetes – Heirloom Seeds among your herbs and vegetables — they not only brighten the space but also help deter pests naturally.
Other great annuals to add to your beds or containers include:
- For shady spots: New Guinea Impatiens, Busy Lizzies, and Begonias.
- For sunny areas: SunPatiens, Vincas, Zinnias, Petunias, Salvias, Dianthus, Gazanias, Alyssum, Gypsophila, Calibrachoa, Verbena, Celosia, and Portulaca.
Also consider classics like Lavender, Cuphea, Gaura, Angelonia, Agapanthus, and Inca Lilies (Alstroemeria) — the dwarf hybrids are especially rewarding in containers.
Plant Dahlia tubers now for a late-summer show, and direct-sow easy summer favourites such as Cosmos, Sunflowers, and Zinnias.
🥬 In the Veggie Garden
November is prime planting time for warm-season crops.
Sow seeds of pumpkins, beans, sweetcorn, cucumbers, melons, and French beans directly into the soil.
Plant out tomato, chilli, and sweet pepper seedlings, and keep your herb garden productive by succession planting basil, coriander, and parsley.
Feed and water leafy greens like spinach and lettuce regularly to help them stay strong against pests. Companion planting with chives, rosemary, or basil can provide extra protection naturally.
For something sweet, plant blueberries, raspberries, or gooseberries in containers or open beds. Use a slow-release fertiliser and keep the soil consistently moist.
🌾 Lawn Care
Summer lawns love attention. Feed them with a quality lawn fertiliser, water deeply, and mow regularly — but avoid cutting too short.
If weeds are becoming a problem, treat them with a selective herbicide or hand-remove them before they spread.
Refreshing Garden Floors
If your gravel paths or garden beds are looking tired, rake and top them up with fresh stones or pebbles. Play with different textures — coarse gravel, smooth river stones, or patterned designs — to create a clean and interesting look.
Container Gardening
Containers are ideal for smaller spaces or patios and can transform any area into a lush, green corner. Choose attractive pots as focal points and fill them with premium potting soil — avoid using garden soil, which often contains weeds and diseases.
For best results:
- Add drainage chips before planting.
- Top with decorative mulch to retain moisture.
- Feed regularly with a water-soluble fertiliser.
🌺 Regional Gardening Tips
Eastern Cape
Brighten up your beds with red-flowering annuals like petunias, calibrachoas, verbenas, and celosias. Keep newly planted summer bulbs watered, and start monthly feeding.
Add summer favourites like Hibiscus, Jasmine, Agapanthus, Carnations, Dahlias, and Bougainvillaeas for a tropical touch.
Gauteng
Shade-loving beauties such as Hydrangeas, Gardenias, Fuchsias, and Plectranthus should be thriving now. Feed with an acidic fertiliser if they’re not performing well.
Add Duranta ‘Sheena’s Gold’ for striking foliage contrast.
Replant basil and pinch off flower buds for lush leaves. For a decorative border, mix perennial basil, ornamental grasses, and Gaura ‘Belezza’.
Limpopo
Beat the heat by using water-retaining granules in flowerbeds and pots.
Trim old palm fronds, feed palms with nitrogen, and water deeply.
Keep planting beetroot, peppers, eggplants, and tomatoes, and re-sow herbs like basil and chives. Watch out for whitefly during hot spells.
Mpumalanga
For shaded colour, try Plectranthus ‘Mona Lavender’ and colourful coleus.
Focus on indigenous, drought-hardy species such as crassulas, vygies, gazanias, and arctotis, combined with ornamental grasses and restios for texture.
Fertilise bromeliads regularly and flush their crowns with water to prevent mosquito larvae.
Free State
Secure roses and young trees before summer storms. Deadhead roses, remove suckers, and prune after the first flush.
Mulch well with bark, pine needles, or stones to conserve moisture.
Keep spraying fruit trees to protect developing fruit from pests like fruit flies.
KwaZulu-Natal
Plant a mix of summer annuals like bedding dahlias for festive colour.
Feed Cannas, Calatheas, and Heliconias, and maintain steady watering.
Harvest ripe veggies regularly and control mildew on pumpkins.
Raise pots on bricks or “pot feet” to improve drainage, especially after heavy rain.
Western Cape
Continue planting Dahlias, Gladiolus, Amaryllis, and Eucomis for a vibrant display.
Take cuttings of Arctotis and Osteospermum, and harvest seeds from Namaqualand daisies and other annuals.
Prune fynbos like proteas and ericas after flowering.
Hydrangeas love the Cape climate — give them morning sun, afternoon shade, and plenty of water.
For companion planting, grow herbs like basil, thyme, and oregano near brinjals for flavour-rich harvests.
Northern Cape
In arid gardens, combine gravel or permeable paving with hardy groundcovers such as Dymondia, Erigeron, or Violas.
For sunny spots, plant thymes or creeping herbs between stones to soften hard surfaces.
Grow drought-tolerant vegetables like carrots, beetroot, asparagus, and Jerusalem artichoke for low-maintenance yields.
North West
Rejuvenate bare patches with compost and bonemeal, then sow quick-blooming flowers like Marigolds, Cosmos, Petunias, and Portulacas.
Stay vigilant for red spider mite, which targets fruit trees and veggies.
Plant beans, baby marrow, carrots, lettuce, and parsley, and experiment with ornamental artichokes, sunflowers, and runner beans for a striking edible garden.
🌞 Wrapping Up
November is the month when your garden asks for attention — and rewards you with beauty. Keep feeding, watering, and pruning regularly, and don’t be afraid to get creative with containers or companion planting.
Whether you’re growing for beauty, food, or relaxation, take the time to enjoy your garden — it’s your living, breathing piece of summer.
