Topic: The Season is almost finished .. Now what?

[MassMama]

  We all worked hard in our gardens this year  .. Now what do we need to do to get ready for Fall crops.. garlic and onions in this area..
What do you till into your garden to prepare it for Next spring..
Can you till your tomatoes peppers and such right back into the garden area? Or do you dispose of them?
Do you add your compost Now or in the spring?
Ohhh and what are the plans for next year?

[duh]

Well today I harvested the last of the white radishes.  Only one had a radish of any size.  Very very disappointing there.  But I took the soil shook out the roots and placed it in the compost pile to get revitalized over the winter.  My compost continues to work for all but about 2 weeks of winter so it will have lots of time to gain plenty of nutrients.

Then I broke up what was left and seeded it with the sprouted red wheat that had been for the birds until it rained and the seeds sprouted again lol.  I'd have preferred to have rye but money is really tight this year so, I worked with what I had.

Next I have to mark my horseradish so that when it looses its leaves I can still find it.  I'm going to harvest it this year and take 2 inch pieces and plant them for next years crop. 

I'm also going to mark my peonies so that when I am digging around in that bed in the spring I don't accidently disturb them.  I plan to add quite a bit of compost to that area next spring.  Of course I'll have to scratch away the existing soil over the peonies and then replace it with the compost. 

I was told to throw away the tomato plants because they can cause diseases in the soil.  So that's what I do with them.  I don't know about pepper plants.  Although when it gets near frost I plant to bring in the one paparika pepper that has fruited and one of the banana peppers too.  Hopefully I'll be able to keep them over the winter.  I'm not sure but I will try.

Also when it gets closer to cold weather I'm going to harvest my mint and make apple mint jelly.  I can't do the chocolate mint I had hoped to because of the drought pretty much killing off my chocolate mint.  But I keep hoping it will recover.  The pineapple mint certainly did.

Once the hosta that is still in the chinese lantern bed begins to die back I'll move it to the other shade bed.  And mark it so I don't dig it up next year like I did this year.  What a mess that was.

And of course there is planting the other two mums.  I almost forgot about them.  Hopefully at least one of them will be the burgandy color.  I can always hope. 

When the leaves start falling I'll be gathering up 3 inches worth for over the bulb beds.  The rest will go in the compost pile. 



 

[patches]

Most of my Fall chores involve getting everything cleaned up and in shape for next year.  It's a good time to divide and move some of the plants like my Echinacea and a few others that like to be moved in the fall.   

My tomato plants, pepper plants, and cucumber plant are all going in the yard waste bins because I don't compost any of my veggie plants. I always have more than enough for my compost bins with the leaves, grass and kitchen waste.       

[MassMama]

  everyone seems to have a plan going on.. Except for me 
Since this was my first veggie garden, I really don't know what to do to prepare for mext year..  But am getting ideas!! 

[duh]

I'm also going to winter/fall sow some for-get-me-nots and some lambs ear.  And some more garlic.  I have cloves to work with this time rather than seeds.  I've got my fingers crossed.

[MassMama]

My garlic should be arriving soon for me.. I ordered a special one for our cold climate.. It is called spanish rojo.. I can't wait it is suppose to be awsome!
It should also be just in time for the other veggies to die off.. Sure hope that my compost is ready by that time!!

[patches]

I've always loved the Lambs Ear and plan on putting some of them in two of my shade beds.  I think the texture and silvery color will add a lot to the shady areas. 

[Dianna]

We will be planting cover crops in our gardening areas to get the garden ready for next Spring. I am thinking we will be planting peas. Jim has already tilled the watermelon vines in and is starting to work on the veggie garden...

I am, also, wanting to start another round of cucumber and squash. Just a couple of hills, though, not enough to make us "work". I didn't like paying 69 cents for a cucumber the other day at the grocery store when we were overrun with the things at the start of the season...

I will be weeding out my front flower bed as soon as possible. I will definitely put a barrier down with a good cover of mulch, when I do. I am sick to death of seeing weeds where I should be seeing flowers!

[duh]

I agree about the weeds what a pain.  If I had some money for a barrier I would probably do it.  When it dries out so I can sit on the ground I'm going to make a project of cleaning out all the weeds in the berm.  I've kept the raised bed clear of weeds so I only have that one area to worry about.

[patches]

I will be weeding out my front flower bed as soon as possible. I will definitely put a barrier down with a good cover of mulch, when I do. 

Dianna, are you talking about the landscaping fabric?   

[Dianna]

Tammy, I will be putting down layers of cardboard and newspaper in some of the gardens, so eventually it will benefit the garden, too. When the weeds grow through the cardboard, they seem a lot easier to pull up. Cardboard works a lot better than landscape weed fabric. Your local grocery would probably give you all the boxes you need.

Patti, I have used landscaping fabric in the past. I will be busy pulling it up soon. I don't think that stuff is worthy of being called a weed barrier after seeing all the weeds that have grown through it. It has made a big mess out around my pond area and when you try to weed them out, it pulls the plastic up, too! It is a big mess...

However, Jim brought me some blanks that are "used in a manufacturing process for trunk deck lids and the hood under panel for automobiles" in the Spring of this year. When I first started redoing my pond area, the day before I fell, I had put some of these out there and weighted them down with bricks. They are "about 3mil thick, made of black polypropylene, with a thin layer of carpet laminated to it". I plan on putting slits in them to help with the drainage, but don't see any need to really. I do not see any weeds growing through the stuff nor any standing water on top of it. When I run out of these, I will be using just cardboard and newspaper...



I can tell a big difference in where I have lain the cardboard down and where I put landscape fabric out at the pond. All I have to do is tug just a little bit and if the weed comes out easy, I know it is cardboard underneath. I may decide to use just cardboard there, anyway, and save those "blanks" for somewhere else...

[patches]

Patti, I have used landscaping fabric in the past. I will be busy pulling it up soon. I don't think that stuff is worthy of being called a weed barrier after seeing all the weeds that have grown through it. It has made a big mess out around my pond area and when you try to weed them out, it pulls the plastic up, too!  It is a big mess...
 

Dianna, I couldn't agree with you more.  I've found the landscaping fabric is really a pain;  however, I do have some "Professional" Landscaping Fabric that is guaranteed for 20 years and I did use that in my landscaped beds in the front of the house.  Of course, I only have shrubs, bushes, Hostas, and some Liriope in there, and I really haven't had any problems with getting weeds in there, but it doesn't get a lot of sun.     There is a large overhang above the beds and two huge trees in the front yard, so I guess this helps to keep the weeds in check.     I also have it on my mulched garden path and every couple of years I can just pull it up and scoop up all the "black gold" for my garden beds.  Then I can just lay it back down and mulch over it again with my new mulch.     But, other than that, I don't and won't use it anywhere else in my yard.   

[duh]

that's good to know.  thanks for the information. 

[Penny]

I went and have started buying my Fall plants....some of the summer ones are looking a little scraggly, so they've been replaced.....hated to do it!!

[duh]

yep I plan on starting my fall seeds anytime now.  I guess I'm just being lazy.  I need to get a move on.  The temperatures are low enough that I think the seeds would be fine. 

[Penny]

We have already had a frost up here in Ontario, so that really did a number on my plants!!

[Tamara]

We've had frost as well. I just hand till some aged manure in the fall and add compost in the spring. I am expanding my veggie garden again this year, so I will be cutting and chucking sod all next week.

[patches]

We have already had a frost up here in Ontario, so that really did a number on my plants!!

Oh Penny, FROST!!!     Geesh, right now the heat is doing a BIG number on all my plants.    Evidently, fall is going to come early this year, or at least it will look like it.

[Penny]

  I know eh...i dont like the idea of frost but i do believe that we will  have an early Fall this year, its amazing all the trees that we have turning up here 

[patches]

Well, Penny, I think the growing season is finished for me here,  but the "work" season is just beginning!     I don't think we are going to have an early Fall though,    but I could be wrong.   

[Penny]

I hate to see the flowers go, but i also love to decorate for the Fall too, one of my favorite times of the year.

[patches]

Well, Fall is pretty, but it's certainly not my favorite time of the year.  I think it probably goes back to when I was a kid.  Geesh, when Fall arrived it meant that summer was over, and I had so go back to school.  Geesh, I guess nothing much has really changed for me!      

[Triss]

I have some major "intentions" for he gardens this fall.  Hopefully I will actually get to them.  I wanna move my glads to a sunnier spot and all of the iris to the side of the house.  I also have to mulch the entire back of the garden where not much is growing so I can prevent weeds from taking over there, I would rather have it empty of plants, than full of weeds like it is now.  Plant a few more mums and start my fall seeds in the back area in containers.

[duh]

I'll me cutting up sod too.  It's a good thing I didn't do my fall sowing yet since I'll be moving.  This way I have the seeds for the new place. 

I have to start putting the compost in containers so it can be moved too.  I'm not going to loose my compost when I have a new place to set up beds in. 

I'm so excited.  And I have so much to do.  Now all the bulbs have to be dug up.  So I can take them with me.

[patches]

  Triss & Duh, it sound like you both have some ambitious plans for Fall.  I want to move and divide a lot of my perennials but it's way too hot right now.