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| August edible garden |
Saturday August 3, 2024
August brings harvests of some of the favorites of the edible garden. Sweet corn, tomatoes, summer squashes (like zucchini and yellow straight neck), peppers of all types (sweet and hot), Mediterranean herbs, cucumbers, okra, apples, peaches, pears, grapes, snap beans, melons, figs, eggplant, honey, artichokes, tomatillos are all in season this month.
At the same time, it is also the month to plant for fall and winter harvests. It can be hard to make room for new seedlings, but your pantry will thank you in the cool days of fall that are coming.
A secret to maximizing your fruiting vegetables like peppers, tomatoes, eggplants, snap beans, tomatillos, and summer squash is to harvest them continuously. A plant’s driving force is to reproduce so by continuing to harvest, it causes the plant to put on more fruits. There are many options to preserve the extras: Freezing the extras for winter, drying Dehydrate or sun dry your extra veggies, canning Easy, low tox canning of summer's bounty, and pickling Make your own pickles without a store bought seasoning mix.
We have many deer, raccoons, birds and squirrels in our yard; deer bed down in our yard at night. To keep the critters from snacking on ripe tomatoes on the vine, I harvest them as they are turning red and let them finish ripening on the counter overnight. Still taste great being picked so close to peak ripeness.
Continue to fertilize with a natural, organic fertilizer every month for veggies in the ground and semiweekly for those in containers. When fertilizing, scratch the fertilizer into the soil around the plant. Nitrogen is the one component of fertilizing that is most used during the season. If you leave the fertilizer on top of the ground, you will need twice as much as the nitrogen will off gas into the atmosphere if not covered. Summer garden tips
Keeping consistent moisture to your plants is key. Irregular watering causes tomatoes to crack and blossom end rot to occur. Make sure your garden is getting 1 inch of water weekly either from rain or watering, being sure to water deeply at the base of the plant and not on the leaves. Many warm weather lovers like squash, tomatoes and cucumbers are susceptible to fungal diseases. If your garden is susceptible to fungal diseases, you can continue using a natural preventative fungicide spray weekly to keep it at bay and boost your garden's production.
You can also start a second round of tomatoes and squash in July to have strong production from end of August through frost if you find your production is dropping off this time of year and you are keeping up with watering and fertilizing. I have been trying different summer squash too, looking for one that keeps right on producing for the entire season. Trombetta has done great in my garden for the last 4 years. The production is steady, too, so you don't have zucchinis over running your counter. The only potential drawback is that the vine is a rambler. It grows to around 20' long in my garden. You can have it grow between other plants. Just be sure to get it moving in the direction you want it to grow while it is small.
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| Summer peppers and tomatoes |
Planting for fall and winter vegetables
I know it sounds crazy, but now is the time to start planting for fall and winter harvests. You need to plant early enough for your veggies to be full size when frosts hit. Add 14 days to the days to maturity listed on the seed packet and back it up from your last frost date for the time to plant your seeds.
Daylight hours determine the growth rate of plants. Since the days are getting shorter, it will take longer for the plants to come to full maturity in the waning daylight hours of fall than the lengthening hours of spring and with the cooling temperatures coming next month. By the first of November, almost all growth has come to a full standstill until the beginning of January when daylight hours are back to 10+ hours per day.
If you can't pick up transplants like broccoli, cabbage, lettuce, kale, and herbs at big box stores or a local nursery, you can get transplants from on-line nurseries if you want to go that route. Farmers markets may also have them.
I have started doing more from seed. I re-use 6 pack containers, peat pots or a rectangular self-watering pot, put starting mix in them, water well, then add seeds, covering with soil per packet instructions. I just leave them on our covered deck so that I can keep them moist. Seeds sprout super fast this time of year. The other advantage for outdoor seed starting is that they are already acclimated to the summer temps so do well when transplanted.
Fall planting guide for cool season crops
August is the month for starting greens (arugula, corn salad, lettuce, miner’s lettuce, spinach, mustard, endive, chard, lettuce), kohlrabi, onions, scallions, cabbage plants, radishes, peas, fava beans and turnips.
In September, plant more greens, carrots, and radishes. For our Zone 7a garden, the first 2 weeks of September are prime for planting lettuce. Try sowing different cold hardy varieties at the same time. Different varieties mature at different times, giving you an on-going harvest.
October is the month to plant garlic for next year’s harvest. Be sure to order now before they sell out! Time to plant garlic! With growing tips......
For more details on varieties to plant, Cold season crops for your edible garden
Caring for your new seeds and transplants
Like in the spring, newly sown seeds need moisture to sprout. Keep seeds and transplants moist but not wet until they get their first real set of leaves and are well established. Then water as needed.
Many crops can be harvested into December and beyond without any cover, depending on how cold fall is. Some get sweeter with some frost, like carrots, chard, and lettuce. With cover, you can harvest all the way through winter and get a jump start on spring!
Below is the portable greenhouse I use. I can get 10 large pots under its cover. Portable greenhouse covers like this could also be placed directly in the garden as well. I use it to extend the fall and winter harvest for potted greens, broccoli and cabbage. Prepare for hard freeze
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| My portable greenhouse |
A quick reminder, save the seeds from your best performers to plant next year! You can replant seeds from any heirlooms or open pollinated plants. Not only does it save you money, but it also gives you the plants that do the best under your garden and zone conditions.
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