Can you believe it's almost the end of August? I still have tons of green tomatoes! The summer has really flown by for me this year. So, what can we do in the garden now?I don't know about you, but the hot, humid days of August didn't see me doing more than I had to in the garden. I kept new plants and trees watered, plus my raised bed with the tomatoes and cucumbers. I weeded where I had to, but it's so busy in our family, combined with the heat, that I don't do a lot outside. When the weather starts to cool off though I am outside with a vengeance. Here is what I do:
WEEDS: I pull as many weeds as I can, especially after a rain. I know it's tempting to let them go but they will go to seed and make it worse next year. I pull weeds and lay down mulch or wood chips in beds that don't have them yet. Every time I do this I am thrilled in the spring when things look so nice.
MISTAKES: There is still time to move plants before a heavy frost. I have several plants that I put in places that just didn't work out and I need to move them. I make sure to add compost to the planting holes, water well, and then mulch when I move things and they are usually fine through the winter.
RESEEDING: If you've been deadheading (I know you have been!) you can stop and let the plants form seeds now. Either gather them as they dry to save for next year or let them go to reseed themselves. Snapdragon, calendula, and cosmos are seeds I usually let go to randomly grow the next season. I'm going to collect zinnia, nasturtiums and a few others to sow next year.
GENERAL: Basically, when the weather cools I do a lot of clean-up that I missed when it was so hot. Yes, I'm a tad wimpy when it comes to heat and humidity. If you aren't, then good for you, because you won't have a big fall chore list like I do:)
I still have cucumbers, beans and tomatoes growing and ripening. I won't give up on those until frost. I can even cover them for light frosts to give them more time. On OFL we do have a cool article from Cheri at Fabulous Foods on using green tomatoes: http://oldfashionedliving.com/greentomatoes.html
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Its sounds very peaceful, if busy, in your garden. Wish I was there.
ReplyDeleteAli
P.S. do the wood chips really help keep the weed population in check?
From the experience I've had they really do help. It's not perfect, but if you have the weeds pulled first, then put the chips down, it REALLY slows it down enough that I go out once a week or so and yank out a couple of the ones that sneak through. I had wood chips in the city too and it was the same way. It really did help.
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