September Garden Ramblings
September came in with a bang! Whoa, has it ever been hot out there. Then came the smoke from the forest fires, turned our skies a creepy yellow colour, but also cooled things down a couple of degrees.
While it is not feeling much like fall weather here on the island yet, we all know that it can change in the blink of an eye... bringing on the fall rains and risk of late blight.
So, what is going on in our gardens this month? Lots! This is harvest month, the month when everything seems to ripen before our very eyes. Tomatoes go from green to red in a matter of days, cukes and zukes go from small to ginormous almost overnight.
Canning, freezing, curing, storing, baking, stewing, brewing ... How to keep up with all this glorious bounty? And... what a wonderful problem to have, eh?
- Take the tops off of your brussel sprouts this month, if they are not sizing up decently by now. The top looks like a wee cabbage, twist or cut it off to put the growth into the sprouts rather than the plant.
- Remove most of the foliage from your squash to help ripen the fruits. Vine ripened is always yummier!
- Plant more veggies into the cleared out areas, wherever there is room!
For more information and an in-depth post about what to do with the rest of your wonderful harvest, I am sharing last year's September blog post with you all here. Everything you need to know... when to harvest each veggie, how to know when they are done, and what to do with them all. Please see HERE for that post.
If you would like even more September harvest ideas, please go to the archives and you will see many, many year's worth of what-to-do's and how-to-do-'ems ; )
What veggies to plant from seed in September?
You can still plant some things from seed, as long as you plant soon.
- Beets
- Collards
- Corn Salad aka Mache
- Greens, like arugula, mustards
- Lettuces
- Mesclun
- Pak Choi
- Radishes
- Spinach
- Turnips
- Winter radishes, like China rose, Daikon, Black Spanish
What to grow from transplants...
Is getting to be borderline time for some starter plants, but as one never knows how the fall is going to go, I say.. take a chance and plant all kinds of things. If we have an early winter, you will have lost just a few bucks, but if we have a nice, long Indian Summer, you have everything to gain! Last year, our fall here on the island was long and wonderful.
Sure bets from starter plants are..
- Arugula
- Cauliflower
- Collards
- Greens
- Kale
- Lettuce
- Leeks
- Mescluns
- Pak Choi
- Spinach
- Swiss Chard
- Turnips
Getting close but worth the chance...
- Broccoli
- Brussels sprouts
- Cabbage
- Kohlrabi
- Onions
Garlic, of course!
Garlic can be planted anywhere from mid-September through till early November. I do mine in early October. Click here for a planting how-to.
For more information... I have blogged about garlic for many years, just pop the word garlic into the search bar and you will gets post upon post of information.
Add some colour! Autumn is here!
Replace those tired, burnt out summer plantings with autumnal hues, giving your front stoop a fresh look, a new start to go with the start of fall.
While it is not feeling much like fall weather here on the island yet, we all know that it can change in the blink of an eye... bringing on the fall rains and risk of late blight.
So, what is going on in our gardens this month? Lots! This is harvest month, the month when everything seems to ripen before our very eyes. Tomatoes go from green to red in a matter of days, cukes and zukes go from small to ginormous almost overnight.
Canning, freezing, curing, storing, baking, stewing, brewing ... How to keep up with all this glorious bounty? And... what a wonderful problem to have, eh?
- Take the tops off of your brussel sprouts this month, if they are not sizing up decently by now. The top looks like a wee cabbage, twist or cut it off to put the growth into the sprouts rather than the plant.
- Remove most of the foliage from your squash to help ripen the fruits. Vine ripened is always yummier!
- Plant more veggies into the cleared out areas, wherever there is room!
For more information and an in-depth post about what to do with the rest of your wonderful harvest, I am sharing last year's September blog post with you all here. Everything you need to know... when to harvest each veggie, how to know when they are done, and what to do with them all. Please see HERE for that post.
If you would like even more September harvest ideas, please go to the archives and you will see many, many year's worth of what-to-do's and how-to-do-'ems ; )
You can still plant some things from seed, as long as you plant soon.
- Beets
- Collards
- Corn Salad aka Mache
- Greens, like arugula, mustards
- Lettuces
- Mesclun
- Pak Choi
- Radishes
- Spinach
- Turnips
- Winter radishes, like China rose, Daikon, Black Spanish
What to grow from transplants...
Is getting to be borderline time for some starter plants, but as one never knows how the fall is going to go, I say.. take a chance and plant all kinds of things. If we have an early winter, you will have lost just a few bucks, but if we have a nice, long Indian Summer, you have everything to gain! Last year, our fall here on the island was long and wonderful.
Sure bets from starter plants are..
- Arugula
- Cauliflower
- Collards
- Greens
- Kale
- Lettuce
- Leeks
- Mescluns
- Pak Choi
- Spinach
- Swiss Chard
- Turnips
Getting close but worth the chance...
- Broccoli
- Brussels sprouts
- Cabbage
- Kohlrabi
- Onions
Garlic, of course!
Garlic can be planted anywhere from mid-September through till early November. I do mine in early October. Click here for a planting how-to.
For more information... I have blogged about garlic for many years, just pop the word garlic into the search bar and you will gets post upon post of information.
Add some colour! Autumn is here!
Replace those tired, burnt out summer plantings with autumnal hues, giving your front stoop a fresh look, a new start to go with the start of fall.
Plant asters, pansies, mums, heather, ornamental cabbages and kales, grasses to sway in the breeze, violas in pots and baskets. They will last for weeks and even months.
Spiff up your autumn!
Happy Autumn!
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