Here in the middle of the USA, midsummer has arrived! I have picked my first tomato, and my first ear of corn! But, Fall is not that far away, and heat loving vegetables do not produce well when the weather turns cool.
Some of us plant cool-weather plants in the heat of August, so that we can continue to eat out of the garden when the weather turns cold.
This Fall, when the weather turns cold, I intend to be able to feast on kale, peas, broccoli, cabbages, artichokes (a delicate plant in my climate), and Bright Lights swiss chard. Actually, I don’t actually care to EAT swiss chard as much as I like to LOOK at it, it is such a LOVELY plant! I simply adore the contrast between the dark green foliage and the red, white and yellow midribs! I do adore being surrounded by beauty while I garden!
Every year, when I put the all garden in, I face two rather large challenges: guessing when to plant and getting the cool weather plants to germinate.
Of the two of them, guessing when to plant is the hardest: I have seen snow in September and I have seen scorching heat in October: If I plant too early then the poor vegetables are finished and done before Fall arrives, and if I plant too late the plants die before they produce. There are few things more wonderful than harvesting great bowlfuls of vegetables while the yellow fall leaves are drifting by your face! My little dog loves to join me when it is cool and fresh, but the rest of the family prefers to be inside with the TV, so it is usually just the dog and I out in the garden, having fun in the yellow falling leaves.
The other problem is in trying to get the tiny seedlings to grow in the heat of mid-summer. The sun dries the soil out SO quickly that it is possible to water in the morning and have the seedlings dry out before nightfall! In past years I have lost quite a few of my seedlings, but this year we have gotten some well-times rains to keep the seedlings from drying out. With the sun safely covered by clouds, my seedlings are just starting to break through the soil!
I am well on my way to having fall vegetables!
Some of us plant cool-weather plants in the heat of August, so that we can continue to eat out of the garden when the weather turns cold.
This Fall, when the weather turns cold, I intend to be able to feast on kale, peas, broccoli, cabbages, artichokes (a delicate plant in my climate), and Bright Lights swiss chard. Actually, I don’t actually care to EAT swiss chard as much as I like to LOOK at it, it is such a LOVELY plant! I simply adore the contrast between the dark green foliage and the red, white and yellow midribs! I do adore being surrounded by beauty while I garden!
Every year, when I put the all garden in, I face two rather large challenges: guessing when to plant and getting the cool weather plants to germinate.
Of the two of them, guessing when to plant is the hardest: I have seen snow in September and I have seen scorching heat in October: If I plant too early then the poor vegetables are finished and done before Fall arrives, and if I plant too late the plants die before they produce. There are few things more wonderful than harvesting great bowlfuls of vegetables while the yellow fall leaves are drifting by your face! My little dog loves to join me when it is cool and fresh, but the rest of the family prefers to be inside with the TV, so it is usually just the dog and I out in the garden, having fun in the yellow falling leaves.
The other problem is in trying to get the tiny seedlings to grow in the heat of mid-summer. The sun dries the soil out SO quickly that it is possible to water in the morning and have the seedlings dry out before nightfall! In past years I have lost quite a few of my seedlings, but this year we have gotten some well-times rains to keep the seedlings from drying out. With the sun safely covered by clouds, my seedlings are just starting to break through the soil!
I am well on my way to having fall vegetables!
Kansas, Thats a lovely post! I like the way you describe the beauty of your garden and the way it fulfills you. The way you write, sort of seems like my ideal image of what gardening SHOULD be like. However, my gardening reality this year is closer to holding back the encroachment of natures fury! 