To read more about how my garden is growing this season check out my past Garden Journals from this season:
Hello and happy Fall! I was walking through the garden and said to myself, ‘this space has changed so much!’ I realized it was time for one of the last journal entries of the season.
Herbs
They are crazy overgrown. I’ve got to cut everything back ASAP. The dill has gone to seed and is quite pretty! The parsley is quite robust and the lemon balm is out of control. I will hang dry most of it as I have a lot of pesto already made up.
Lettuce and Greens
The herbs are actually over taking the greens space but I’m still harvesting a bit. In one of the rows where the potatoes were harvested from I have planted kale, spinach and lettuce. I purchased folding low poly tunnels and plan to cover them to extend the season a bit. Those crops are comfortable with a bit of cool temps and even light frost. I really hope to enjoy greens into November and December.
Brussels Sprouts
I haven’t harvested much since my last entry. I planted these way too close so the sprouts did not form well on the ones that were over shadowed by the broccoli and larger stalks.
Broccoli
We are still harvesting broccoli and it’s delicious! A lot has gone to seed and when that happens (which is quite fast) i just pull the whole thing and give it to the pigs and chickens. My second planting is doing well. I thinned them a couple of weeks ago and they are enjoying the space. I will use the poly tunnel on this row.
Peppers
These peppers are LOVING getting the sun now that the garden is thinning out a bit and they aren’t competing quite so much. I will definitely grow the small multi colored bell peppers again, they are much better suited for our growing zone in my opinion.
Cucumbers
This is the wasteland of desolation these days. The cukes are all done. I pulled the last plant and straggler cucumbers last week. The lemon cucumbers are fun to watch grow, I’ll grow them again but probably not as many. The picklers and Suyo Long are the ones we enjoyed the most and will grow again for sure and a friend recommended a variety called 76’s which I’d like to try as well.
Tomatoes
I’ll be honest, I’m a little tired of tomatoes. I don’t even actually like fresh tomatoes except for a few cherry tomatoes in a salad. I grew WAY too many cherry tomatoes and the sauce I’m making is with slicing tomatoes so there is a ton of water which means it takes a lot more time to make into a good thick sauce. Next year I will grow mostly paste tomatoes and one cherry tomato plant and one slicing tomato plant. Please remind me when it’s April and I am dying to plant things in the dirt.
Zucchini
Zucchini is still coming in slowly but surely. The leaves have this fungus or mold on it which is unpleasant. I will research what that could be a result of. The one behemoth one is still going, we’ll let it go a bit longer and see how big it is.
Beans
I picked the Flambo Beans today and the pods are all brown, shriveled and gross looking but the beans inside are so pretty! I didn’t grow many and will actually keep them for seeds for next year and for math manipulatives for the boys to play with. Next year I will grow enough to put up the dry beans, they were a very hands off crop and fun to watch. The yellow wax beans seem to be having a second flush, we at them with dinner tonight! There are some green beans coming in still but if I dont catch them early they get way too big and are very tough.
Cabbage
These little seedlings are putting on some great growth. Ive never planted cabbage as a fall crop so I’m hoping to get even small heads before it gets too cold for it.
Beets and Carrots
The second planting of the beets and carrots are coming up strong. I will probably use the poly tunnels on these two rows as well.
Onions
I wrapped up the onion harvest with much excitement! The Walla Walla’s I harvested a while ago are doing ok in storage. They are definitely not a storage onion. Luckily I cook with a lot of onions so they’ll go fast with minimal waste. The red onions are so pretty and are sitting in the basement and will hopefully last a while with the dehumidifier running.
Squash
We sort of ran out of room for the squash when we were planting and tossed them on the outside of the fence. Then we got the cows and the electric fence went right along the patch. Then I didn’t weed it at all. I had very low expectations for this space but I was quite pleased when I went to harvest and took home all of these beauties. We had two more butternut squash and we have already enjoyed them! I researched the cleaning and curing process, something I’ve never done before. I washed them in vinegar and dried them very well. They are now sitting in the sunny window and I rotate them when I remember. They’ll stay there for a few days and then go to storage, probably in the basement.
Apples
Oh apples, we have so many apples! So far the golden delicious are what we are eating most of and they are delicious. The Macoun and Wolf River will be ready soon. I have a few requests for pies and plan to can a lot of applesauce.
Flowers
The Zinnias aren’t slowing down, they are so absolutely beautiful! There hasn’t been a week that I haven’t had a bouquet on my table and right now the zinnias are adorning our kitchen. I am debating on trying out drying them in silica gel crystals to see if I could make any gifts for Christmas time.
Thanks for stopping by! If you know someone who wants to plant a garden in the spring please be sure to share my tiny corner of the internet with them. I would love to be an encouragement to other new gardeners!
