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| Garden in the morning |
Monday, August 23, 2021
August sees the full swing of the summer garden harvests. Late sweet corn (plant corn in succession and different varieties to lengthen the harvest), summer squashes (like zucchini), peppers of all types (sweet to hot, hot), tomatoes, Mediterranean herbs, cucumbers, okra, apples, peaches, pears, grapes, beans, melons, figs, eggplant, honey, artichokes, raspberries, onion, and fennel are all in season in the Midwest.
This year for warm season veggies, I am harvesting winter squash, tomatoes, peppers, greens, sprouting broccoli, Egyptian walking onions, eggplant, cucumbers, goji berry, green beans, okra, basil, melons, raspberries, strawberries, husk cherries, and herbs. I planted my second round of zucchini and spaghetti squash plants last month and they are flowering. For zucchini, it is a good idea to replant at the beginning of July to keep the harvest going. Many do the same with tomatoes. I started 8 tomato plants the first of July and they all look really healthy and are producing fruits.
If you are not growing summer veggies in your own garden, your local farmers market is a great place to pick up these seasonal veggies to either eat or preserve. The best buy on any fruit or vegetable is when it is in season. You can get even better deals on any produce that has a few blemishes which have no effect on the flavor. If you are going to can, freeze or dry them, just be sure to remove any blemishes first. Preservation garden
Our garden is incorporated into the flower garden mulch bed and in pots, so we have to be choiceful on what to grow.
In pots, we have had great luck with Egyptian walking onions (which can be harvested year round), peppers, eggplant, zucchini, cucumber, greens, fig, columnar apple, passion flower, sweet bay, mint, goji berry, raspberry, lettuce and celery.
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| Spaghetti squash sitting on hummingbird vine |
I have tried sweet and hot peppers in pots and the garden. Overall, they seem to do the best in pots. I am growing a few hot peppers-a pequin type Chiptle, cayenne, and Poblano. I use the tiny peppers in my season salt I make, the cayenne for hot sauce, and Poblano for chili powder.
My sweet peppers have had a slow start this year. I have many peppers on my snacking pepper plant and just a couple on my Pimento pepper plant. I planted all my peppers a bit late this year so they are doing well for how long they have been growing.
I had my first zucchini plant die from the vine borer. Plant after June 1 to miss this insect or do a second planting in June or July.
The first tomato plants put in the garden in May are slowing production. I did a second planting of tomatoes in very large pots at the first of July. There are many fruits on them and I have been harvesting these for a few weeks now. If you don't have a very large pot or a limited space in the garden, look for compact varieties. Choosing which tomatoes to grow
Weekly watering for plants in the ground is sufficient with monthly fertilizing. A pot with a water reservoir in the bottom is the best solution for lengthening the time between waterings when growing in pots. Otherwise, plan on watering your pots every 2-3 days and fertilize every other week. Summer garden tips
Weekly watering for plants in the ground is sufficient with monthly fertilizing. A pot with a water reservoir in the bottom is the best solution for lengthening the time between waterings when growing in pots. Otherwise, plan on watering your pots every 2-3 days and fertilize every other week. Summer garden tips
I grow all of our herbs in the ground except sweet bay. Sweet bay is a tender perennial and will not survive winters outside so I keep it in a pot to bring in each fall. I had one a couple of years ago that was supposed to be hardy in our zone and it didn’t make it. I put my new ones in pots and they have overwintered well in our unheated garage for the last two winters. Fall is a good time to plant perennial herbs, veggies, fruits and flowers.
Rosemary is also tender. I have tried the several varieties that are supposed to be able to survive a Midwest winter and have yet to find one that will last past 2 seasons. I have tried to also keep in a pot and bring in each winter. Last year was the first time I had success with overwintering. This is an herb I will buy each spring if overwintering does not work out, plant in the garden, then preserve for the winter by harvesting late in the season and drying.
Flowers are doing great right now in the garden. They are covered in beneficial insects, butterflies and butterfly caterpillars. The zinnias, marigolds, petunias, Hummingbird vine, and Cock's Comb are putting on a big show. The zinnias, marigolds and Cock's Comb are also edible. Flowers that are edible
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| Red zinnia |
A quick reminder, save the seeds from your best performers that have been disease free to plant next year. You can replant seeds from any heirlooms or open pollinated plants. What do the terms GMO, natural, heirloom, organic, hybrid really mean? 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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