Why we plant in fall (and you should too)
Warm soil and cool air make fall the best time to plant trees, shrubs and perennials in the mountains.
Spring gets all the attention, but fall is when we do most of our planting.
The soil is still warm, so roots keep growing for weeks after the air cools down. Winter rain does the watering. By spring, a fall-planted shrub has a root system that a spring-planted one won’t have until July.
What to plant now
Trees and shrubs, spring bulbs, cool-season grasses and most perennials. Hold off on anything tender, like lantana or salvia, until April.