Bugs, Supermoons, Oaks & Other November News

November 3, 2025
November 2025

“Even if something is left undone, everyone must take time to sit still and watch the leaves turn.”

—  Elizabeth Lawrence

Who's Buggin You?

multi-colored Asian ladybeetle on a flower

Photo by Pamm Cooper, UConn Home & Garden Education Center

Stink bug

Photo by David R. Lance, USDA APHIS PPQ, Bugwood.org

You may find yourself with an abundance of Asian Lady Beetles and Brown Marmorated stink bugs in your home as the weather cools down. There are many ways to keep these pests at bay over the winter months:  

  • Use weather stripping or caulking to prevent them from entering through cracks in doors or windows 
  • Remove them with a vacuum and immediately dispose of the contents to prevent them from returning.  
  • They dislike strong smells. Place cloves, citronella candles, bay leaves near windows or doors to repel them. Similarly, you can make a spray by mixing water with a few drops of spearmint, peppermint, lavender, or lemongrass essential oil and spray it around entry points.    
  • Plant or place chrysanthemums around your home, as they have a natural ladybug-repelling chemical 
  • Scrub areas where the insects congregate with soapy water or vinegar to get rid of their pheromone trails, which could attract more insects.  

Supermoons

A supermoon in the night sky
Photo by Sean Flynn/UConn Photo

With our gardens cleaned up, it's time to embrace other natural wonders. On Wednesday November 5, we will see the second of four consecutive supermoons! This November supermoon will appear 7.9% larger than what we see in the sky on an average night. It is expected to be the largest and brightest of 2025.

A great place to view the supermoons in Storrs is from the top of the Horsebarn Hill pasture at UConn. The moon will begin to rise in the east around sunset.

Identifying Oaks by Their Leaves & Acorns

Two acorns attached to an oak branch
Turkey oak leaves and acorns. Photo by Pamm Cooper, UConn Home & Garden Education Center

All oaks belong to the genus Quercus and belong to one of two groups- white oaks or red oaks.
The white oak group has leaves with seven to nine rounded lobes and are a deep green to blue-green with pale green leaf undersides. Leaves are widest in the middle.

The red oak group has leaf lobes with bristled tips, and some have deeply cut sinuses and very narrow leaf bases.

Acorns of the white oak group mature in a single year, while the acorns of the red oak group mature in two years. Fall is a perfect time to identify our native oaks as acorns are present and leaves are still on the trees.

Native Plant: Sourwood

A tree turning red against a brick building
A Sourwood tree in South Windsor, CT. Photo by Pamm Cooper,
UConn Home & Garden Education Center

Sourwood, Oxydendrum arboreum, is a small to medium tree that is native to eastern and southern U.S. Small, bell-like flowers on large downward flowing panicles appear in summer and are very attractive to bees. The dry, creamy to silver fruit capsules are a striking contrast to the red fall foliage.

Word from the WiSE

Women in Soil Ecology, UConn Student Chapter

When the Worlds of Wine and WiSE Collide!

This month, UConn’s Women in Soil Ecology brings you a word on soils and wine from one of our students currently studying abroad in Italy:

What does soil science have to do with wine? Well, everything! The same as other plants, grapes prefer certain climates, soil types, and nutrient levels. Additives to wine can cover up these imbalances in the ground. The real magic is when a farmer can monitor the terroir, all the natural environmental factors affecting a wine, just right to display the true farm-to-table taste.

Depending on the climate of the vineyard, different soil types will be beneficial. What you would consider necessary for other plants, like well-draining soil or adequate plant hydration, may be the opposite for a vineyard. This is because sometimes, in the case of grapes, it is good to stress them appropriately to improve the flavor concentration.

Soil fertility refers to the well-balanced mix of nutrients in the ground. For grape vines, it's very important to ensure that there is just enough of vital nutrients, since too much nutrition would encourage overvigorous growth, creating a diluted flavor.

So next time you drink your favorite wine, remember how well balanced the soil had to be to get that perfect glass!

By Ella May, Plant Science Undergraduate Student

Weather Outlook

A seasoned gardener always keeps their eye to the sky at any time of year! Maps and the 30 day outlook from NOAA will help you stay prepared for any and all of your gardening chores! (Click image to see larger map.)

    Temperature map

Precipitation Outlook

 

Upcoming Events and Things to Do

             

            Educational Opportunities & Workshops

                      2025 UConn Native Plants and Pollinators Conference

                      UConn Native Plants & Polinators Conference November 13, 2025 Storrs CTInformation & Registration

                      Join Us at Upcoming Talks

                      Good Bug/Bad Bug with Pamm Cooper
                      November 3, 2025 - 11:00 AM
                      Hosted by the Old Saybrook Garden Club
                      Grace Episcopal Church, 336 Main Street, Old Saybrook CT

                      Lichens and Slime Molds of Connecticut with Pamm Cooper
                      November 10, 2025 - 7:00 PM 
                      Hosted by the Manchester Garden Club
                      Assumption Church Hall, 27 Adams Street South, Manchester CT

                        Supplement Your Garden Produce with CT Grown Products! 

                        Connecticut is rich in agricultural history, with many operational farms that have lots to offer local markets! As you plan your holiday feasts this season, consider buying local, CT grown products.

                        Supporting local CT Agriculture is a way that gardeners can supplement the fresh foods they grow in their garden, with seasonal offerings from year round operations.

                         

                        November Gardening Tips

                          • Wait to spread winter mulch until after the ground has frozen. Mulching beforehand can delay dormancy and makes a good home for voles. Once the ground has frozen (but before it snows), mulch fall planted perennials by placing 3 to 5 inches of pine needles, straw, chopped leaves around them
                          • Finish the cleanup of the vegetable garden or beds, removing all plant debris
                          • Cut back perennials that were covered in powdery mildew during the summer. Cut stalks to the ground and dispose of them
                          • Continue to thoroughly water trees, shrubs, planting beds, lawn areas and recently planted evergreens until a hard frost. Plants should go into the winter well-watered
                          • Beets, parsnips, and carrots can be covered with a thick layer of straw or leaves and left in the ground for harvest, as needed, during the winter. This may not be an option in areas with heavy vole populations
                          • Keep mowing your lawn as long as the grass is growing. Meadow voles and field mice will damage turf and nearby trees and shrubs if they have long grass for food and cover
                          • Remove any mummified remaining fruits from trees, rake up and dispose of old leaves
                          • Pull stakes and plant supports. Clean them with a 10% bleach solution before storing for the winter
                          • Shut off and drain outside faucets
                          • Consider providing sunflower hearts instead of whole seeds. It will provide a better source of calories for the birds and eliminates hull waste beneath the feeder
                          • Clay and ceramic pots can crack over the winter if they fill with rain or melted snow that subsequently freezes and expands. Empty pots and place upside down under a tarp or store them in a shed or the garage

                          This Month’s Newsletter Contributors: 
                          Heather Zidack, Pamm Cooper, Holly McNamara, Ella May, Emily Leahy, Dr. Nick Goltz