I got the fall garden in this past week, hopefully not too late. 1st frost end Oct or into Nov. There are 9 broccoli starts in the ground. This is in a 4 x 4 bed, most had gone fallow for the season (the horrors), so good time to clean out and add dirt etc. There is still one lavender in there. Along with the broccoli a small area with spinach seeds. There is a another large container with spinach seeds. Then the spinach starts, just because I saw a 9 pack at the store. They are split between 2 containers. In the spring the slugs thought I put the spinach out just for them. Now I am armed and dangerous with Sluggo type pellets, and will put out at 1st sign of the slimy things.
It's going into fall and cool season I wish I liked Kale and the other greens that grow so well here. Oh well!
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Mysterious Gardener
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Francis Barnswallow
- Green Thumb
- Posts: 696
- Joined: Fri Sep 03, 2010 7:28 pm
- Location: Orlando
I have planted Georgia hybrid collards, cabbage collards, curly leaf mustard and purple top turnips. Okra, several kinds of pepper and egg plant are still going strong. One tomato plant has survived the brutal heat and dry over the last month and should produce some fodder for a few more BLTs.
Today I wanted to plant some mustard and turnips where I have okra. The okras is still going strong, so I just pulled weeds and the dead okra stalks, raked the bare areas a bit, threw out some fertilizer and seed, watered and will see what happens. I guess this is a version of no till gardening, where I can "have my okra and eat is too".
Today I wanted to plant some mustard and turnips where I have okra. The okras is still going strong, so I just pulled weeds and the dead okra stalks, raked the bare areas a bit, threw out some fertilizer and seed, watered and will see what happens. I guess this is a version of no till gardening, where I can "have my okra and eat is too".
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rainbowgardener
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 25279
- Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2009 6:04 pm
- Location: TN/GA 7b
My fall planting is a little bit at a time as I pull things and make room. Today I pulled a few pepper plants, that didn't look like they were still producing much. Harvested a dozen more peppers and then pulled the plants. Did a little weeding and pulled a couple tomato plants in the shady backyard that weren't doing well. In the spaces I planted lettuce and spinach. I want to plant more broccoli, but I'm out of broccoli seed. Still more fall planting to come.
In the meantime, I keep harvesting seeds and herbs. Got 15 more moonflower seeds off my huge moonflower vine today.
I made a big pot of veggie chili tonight, with tomatoes, green peppers, celery, parsley and herbs from my garden. Ate some for dinner and froze the rest for two more chili dinners this winter. I processed 6 pounds of tomatoes into the chili, which used up all the ripe tomatoes I had on hand.
However, putting four large green peppers in to the chili, still left me with a huge bowl of them. I eat the tomatoes, took a bunch of them with me to a committee meeting yesterday to share with everyone. The green peppers I don't just eat raw like that, so I have more of them left around. Need to figure out what to do with all the excess green peppers - I already froze some. Most of the recipes for using up green peppers either call for tomatoes or are not vegetarian. I could make green pepper jelly, but I have a ton of jars of jelly sitting around already... maybe I will. I did find this nice jelly recipe:
Big Batch Habanero Gold (Carol Calls It Hot N Sweet Confetti Jelly)
1 Cup minced dried apricots (1/8" dice)
Note: Could use dried peaches or pears instead.
1 1/4 total cups minced red sweet pepper and -minced red onion (1/8" dice), approximately half-and-half.
1/4 Cup Habanero peppers
Note: For extra-hot increase Habaneros to 1/2 cup and reduce
1 1/2 Cup white vinegar
6 Cup sugar
1 3-oz. pouch liquid pectin
I'm assuming I could use my green bells instead of red ones.
any other suggestions welcome..
In the meantime, I've been thinking about soil fertility issues with doing fall gardens. In earlier years, I used to just put my garden to bed in the fall, mulch everything well and let it rest. In the spring, turn the mulch under and plant. Now, with doing fall crops and planting onions and garlic in Oct and then doing early spring crops, it seems like the garden beds don't get much rest. I'm working a little harder with compost tea, compost, mulch and hoping I am keeping up.
In the meantime, I keep harvesting seeds and herbs. Got 15 more moonflower seeds off my huge moonflower vine today.
I made a big pot of veggie chili tonight, with tomatoes, green peppers, celery, parsley and herbs from my garden. Ate some for dinner and froze the rest for two more chili dinners this winter. I processed 6 pounds of tomatoes into the chili, which used up all the ripe tomatoes I had on hand.
However, putting four large green peppers in to the chili, still left me with a huge bowl of them. I eat the tomatoes, took a bunch of them with me to a committee meeting yesterday to share with everyone. The green peppers I don't just eat raw like that, so I have more of them left around. Need to figure out what to do with all the excess green peppers - I already froze some. Most of the recipes for using up green peppers either call for tomatoes or are not vegetarian. I could make green pepper jelly, but I have a ton of jars of jelly sitting around already... maybe I will. I did find this nice jelly recipe:
Big Batch Habanero Gold (Carol Calls It Hot N Sweet Confetti Jelly)
1 Cup minced dried apricots (1/8" dice)
Note: Could use dried peaches or pears instead.
1 1/4 total cups minced red sweet pepper and -minced red onion (1/8" dice), approximately half-and-half.
1/4 Cup Habanero peppers
Note: For extra-hot increase Habaneros to 1/2 cup and reduce
1 1/2 Cup white vinegar
6 Cup sugar
1 3-oz. pouch liquid pectin
I'm assuming I could use my green bells instead of red ones.
any other suggestions welcome..
In the meantime, I've been thinking about soil fertility issues with doing fall gardens. In earlier years, I used to just put my garden to bed in the fall, mulch everything well and let it rest. In the spring, turn the mulch under and plant. Now, with doing fall crops and planting onions and garlic in Oct and then doing early spring crops, it seems like the garden beds don't get much rest. I'm working a little harder with compost tea, compost, mulch and hoping I am keeping up.