Tonio: I use that one also, but the other is a lot more microclimate specific with the map. Phil: That's a good general rule. By the way, notice the different dates for seeds or PLANTS for all the brassicas. What's kind of bogus is if you want to go down to Home Depot and pick up some fall/winter seedlings, they won't carry them until xmas or so -- not really a good time to stick a small seedling in the ground with the lack of sunlight, but Armstrong starts carrying them in late August. Yep. I grow quite a bit. Broccoli, Cauli, Bok Choy, Collards, kale, Leeks, Red Onions, Napa(first time this year -- planted seedlings in Dec -- produced real well, though for the longest time, I didn't think they were going to head; Snow Peas were awesome this year -- started in early November; Spinach, Leaf Lettuces, Swiss chard. What I've noticed is most of the Brassicas like to be planted early on in the fall or the mid-late winter -- once again, because of the lack of sunlight. Bok Choy's a hit or miss thing with me though -- I either get some decent plants or the heat or cold(what I've read recently) causes them to bolt. Potatoes -- I tried some reds one year and got some small ones, but since then I've found out that they like a pretty acidic soil and we're a bit on the basic side here in the west. So, before i try again, I'll have to add some sulfur to bring the ph down some. That... and the fact that I'm somewhat of a chile fanatic and since they're both in the nightshade family, it doesn't lend itself to crop rotation very easily. Nancy: Sometimes, just SOME TIMES, I wish I was more North for certain crops. Kevin

Unless you consider them very unsightly right now, there's no reason not to let them stay green as long as possible. You can cut them back after they have frozen and died, or even cut them back in spring. They will naturally die down all the way to the ground when they do go dormant. The stems should basically fall out on their own or you can cut them down to 1-2 inches. They may be established well enough survive winter whether you cut them or not, but you'll certainly improve your chances even more if you leave them green as long as possible. September-planted mums sometimes make it and sometimes they don't. But the green leaves will allow the roots to continue getting deeper.

I assume they would be dead sticks by now. Yes you can cut them. If they are not, and somehow still green, you can still cut them back and they will grow again.

Blue spirea is a beautiful shrub if you can keep it alive...good luck. Lavender is best pruned right after it finishes blooming for a second lighter bloom. Otherwise prune in November or late winter/early spring to form a mounding shape. Also prune out any really old stems, dead, or horizontal growing stems along the base. Spring and summer care for Russian sage consists mainly of pruning. When new spring growth emerges, cut the old stems back to just above the lowest set of leaves. If the plant begins to spread open or sprawl in late spring or summer, shear off the top one-third of the stems to encourage upright growth.