October Garden

The season is moving along, and I'm trying to catch up. We were out of town for a week, and temperatures dropped and rain increased while we were gone. 

The garden looks pretty raggedy and needs some tender loving care!

I'm still harvesting tomatoes, beets, peppers, rhubarb, and a few beans.

Agenda this week:

1. Finish preparing beds

2. Planting

3. Save seeds

1. Finish preparing beds

I've been loosening and mulching beds little by little, and I still need to work in a nitrogen rich fertilizer, as fall soil is generally depleted of this important nutrient. I've made a chart of where to plant, and I'll prepare one bed each day: Spinach bed (where onions were), collards (where peas were), and bok choy (front left).

2. Planting:

The second half of September is ideal for transplanting cool-tolerant fall crops. We are 2 weeks behind because of our trip. We are pushing up on our first frost date - around October 20th - so I just hope plants will mature quickly.

I've begun to harden off my babies. This week I will plant bok choy, collards, and spinach.

Bok choy (Brassica rapa), is a member of the mustard family, and is native to China, specifically the Yangtze River Delta area, where it was likely bred from native wild brassica species growing in the area around 3,500 years ago. It's a cool-weather crop that you can plant in the early spring and again in the fall.

Bok choy is vulnerable to lots of pests: aphids, cabbage worms and root maggots, flea beetles, slugs and whiteflies. Planting near onions can help deter cabbage maggots, and rosemary, sage, thyme, coriander or nasturtiums will help keep flea beetles and aphids away. Definitely do not plant them near other Brassicas because they are all susceptible to the same harmful insects. In fact, I try to scatter my bok choy here and there in the garden, so it will be less likely to attract insects and worms. I'll put some where I plan to put the garlic.

Spinach (Spinacia oleracea) is in the Amaranthaceae family, related to the beet and Swiss chard. This plant is thought to have originated from central and southwest Asia and first cultivated over 2,000 years ago in Persia (Iran). 

Spinach is a cool weather annual, grown as both a spring and an autumn crop. When planting, temperatures should be above 50°F, but below 60°F for optimal production; usually about 4 weeks prior to the last frost of the spring and 6 weeks before the first frost of autumn. Spinach prefers well-drained, nitrogen rich soil to encourage the growth of tender leaves. Seeds can be sown directly into the soil, about 1-inch apart in an area of full sun (although spinach is tolerant of partial shade) and thinned later to 3-inches apart. Water frequently as growth begins and then on a regular basis as the plants develop. Beans and peas are terrific companion plants for spinach. Not only do legumes affix nitrogen into the soil, but these taller companions help shade the spinach and keep it from bolting. Other spinach companion crops include cabbage, cauliflower, chard, onion, and strawberries.

3. Save seeds:

I’m also going to gather seeds. I've collected handfuls of beans still in the pod to dry - they need to dry for at least a week. Once they are dry I will put them into labeled envelopes, and store all my seeds in a zip-lock bag in the refrigerator, near the bottom, away from the freezer. (Note to self: Next spring, take bags out but keep them closed until the seeds warm, so moisture in the air doesn’t condense on the seeds.)