The cool, crisp days of September are upon us. Most of the garden harvest is in and you may be thinking of putting your garden to bed for the winter. But wait! There is still time to plant more cool season crops in the Mid-West.
While it is true what you can plant this month is limited, there are still quite a few options for your fall and winter garden. Prepare your cold frames and frost covers just in case you need them. Remember you can make a cold frame from four bales of straw and an old window. This will protect young seedlings as well as older plants from frost or chilly nights.
This month you can direct sow argula, Chinese cabbage, collards, endive, lettuce, mache, mustard, parsley, peas, radish, sorrel, spinach and turnips. You can also transplant Chinese cabbage starts into the garden if you have any. Remember to keep your seeds and seedlings well watered. Getting your plants to grow well right now is the key to keeping them alive longer. Cool weather plants that are fully grown can be stored and harvested directly in the garden if they are given adequate protection from frost and fridgid weather.
If you are looking to plant cover crops over part of your garden, September is the time to plant alfalfa, buckwheat, hairy vetch, mustard, oats, radish, winter rye and winter wheat.
Want to learn more about gardening year round? Pre-order a copy of The Complete Idiot’s Guide To Year-Round Gardening written by Delilah Smittle and Sheri Ann Richerson.
Filed under Gardening News, Vegetable Gardening by on Sep 4th, 2009. Comment. 
Hello fellow garden peeps. Do you have a garden related blog? Would you like to be part of my virtual blog tour for “101 English Garden Tips”? If so, read on for the details, then drop me a line.
I am looking for forty blogs, all garden related to visit during my virtual book tour. I will visit one blog per week. The dates will be set once I have forty blogs committed.
During the blog tour I will be having a treasure hunt. In order for participants to win a free, autographed copy of my book “101 English Garden Tips” they will need to follow along. There will be forty clues. The answers to the clues will be posted, one at a time, in each blog post. So, if they miss a week, they will need to go back and look for the clues.
During the “official day” that my article is posted on your blog I will visit periodically to make posts and answer questions. As long as the questions keep coming in, I will keep returning to your blog to answer them.
This will bring new readers to your blog which will increase your traffic flow. Sound like fun? Then do drop me a line, give me a link to your blog and join in the ring of 40 blogs that will be part of the virtual book tour to promote “101 English Garden Tips.”
I hope to hear from you soon!
Sheri
Filed under Gardening News by on Sep 4th, 2009. Comment.
The dog days of summer are indeed upon us. August is one of the hottest months of summer. It is also time when children return to school and you may find you have a bit more time to garden than you did this summer.
Here in Indiana, zone 5/6, there is still plenty of time to plant cool weather crops. Some of these crops have their flavor enhanced when frost hits them. Other crops can be grown almost all winter with the use of cold frames or hoop houses. Cold frames and hoop houses do not cost a lot to make, but can provide an unlimited amount of protection for fall and winter crops.
A simple cold frame can be made out of four bales of straw and a window. Simply set the bales of straw up in a way so they are end to end in a square and place an old window on top. A hoop house can be made using plastic conduit and a piece of 6 mil. plastic. Simply push one end of the conduit into the ground, gently bend it over so the other end touches the ground on the other side of the piece that is in the ground and push it down. Put the conduit pieces two feet apart, making the hoop house as long as you like, cover with 6 mil. plastic and put sand bags, rocks or bricks on the plastic that touches the ground to hold it down.
Some good crops to direct sow this month include arugula, beets, carrots, chard, Chinese cabbage, collards, endive, kale, kohlrabi, mustard, peas, radish, sorrel, lettuce, spinach and turnip. Cover crops include alfalfa, buckwheat, cowpeas, mustard, oats, radish and sunflower.
If you still have plants in your greenhouse or have access to seedlings, August is a good time to transplant young plants of broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, Chinese cabbage, kale, kohlrabi, lettuce and scallions.
Want to learn more about gardening year round? Pre-order a copy of The Complete Idiot’s Guide To Year-Round Gardening written by Delilah Smittle and Sheri Ann Richerson.
Filed under Gardening News, Vegetable Gardening by on Aug 6th, 2009. 3 Comments.
Yes, folks, you read that right, today’s topic is planting vegetable seed in July. It is not too late here in the Midwest to get started gardening. If you already have a garden going, maybe there are some things that are just puckering out that could be replaced or maybe you have room to add some new crops. If you didn’t get around to planting this spring, well, you still have a chance to do just that. So, what are you waiting for? Get out there and get your garden in gear!
Seeds that can be direct sown outdoors this month include beans, both snap and dry, just be sure to pick short season varieties. Carrots, chard, chinese cabbage, collards, cucumber, edamama, kale, kohlrabi, mustard, okra, parsnip, radish, rudabaga, sorrel, squash – both summer and winter varieties and turnip seeds can all be direct sown in July. As with the beans, look for short season varieties. This information can be found on the back of seed packets.
If you didn’t get enough herbs planted earlier in the season, now is the time to direct sow basil, cilantro and parsley.
Keep the weeds down to encourage better growth in your garden. Use newspaper – shredded or whole, straw – even if it has got wet, cardboard or any other type of material that will help block weeds. Plastic should be avoided if possible as it will sour the soil. You can also mulch your garden with finished compost to add extra nutrients to the soil and help block weed growth.
Filed under Gardening News, Homestead Happenings, Vegetable Gardening by on Jul 23rd, 2009. Comment.