The July Garden

July is hot in our valley - hotter than I enjoy. We are experiencing 100+º weather most of this week (which is nothing compared to other parts of the world but more than we are generally used to.)

Luckily, we still have cool mornings. Most big garden projects have been completed, the yard is blooming with lots of flowers, and we have dragonflies and all sizes of bees. It's too late to plant most summer veggies, and too early to start fall crops, so my focus is on garden care - watering, weeding, mulching - and on HARVEST.

Agenda:

1. July harvest

2. July tasks

3. Drying peas

4. July planting tips

1. July Harvest:

All year, my most important task in the garden is to harvest AND USE what I’ve already grown. I try to harvest the low maintenance, high value crops first, and figure out how to use them in the kitchen - just do what I can and enjoy it.

I'm picking raspberries almost every day, and collecting duck eggs of coarse, drying some herbs, and picking lettuce and onions when I need them.

Onions are ready when the bulbs are of a good size and the tops fall over. They can be lifted from the soil with a trowel and cured in a cool, dark place. Unfortunately, most of my onions bolted this year - because of heat perhaps? Next year I'll try mulching them earlier. Now there is nothing to do but harvest and use them quickly, because they won't keep.

Garlic is ready to harvest when the bottom 3-4 leaves of the plant have died. Lift the bulbs gently with a digging fork, and cure it on a tray for 2 weeks in a warm, dry, well-ventilated area. Trim roots to 1/2-inch long and store bulbs in hanging wire baskets or mesh produce bag - air circulation is essential. This year I also plan to separate some cloves from the bulb and freeze them, to ensure that that I have some for winter. Also, use the garlic stems as mulch around pest-prone plants; pests are repelled by the garlic scent.

My sage plant is going crazy, so I plan to dry some to make bundles for smudging. Typically Native people burn white sage, but I burn my homegrown culinary sage, and sometimes add other herbs to the bundles.

My magical smudging bundle:

Sage: For wisdom.
Catnip: For love.
Lavender: For peace and happiness.
Peppermint: For healing and renewal.
Rosemary: For clear thinking.

2. July tasks:

I'm using the Second Breakfast Garden monthly guides this year to update my checklists, because they are in zone 8b. "July is growth-season for heat lovers, bolting season for cool weather crops, and harvest season for garlic and many other root crops. It is also time to plan for fall crops and perhaps even start some seeds."

1. Mulch: Now that the slugs are underground for the season (more or less), it’s okay to add mulch to veggie beds. Drop mulch on top of drip irrigation lines to retain more water. Use untreated straw, leaf mold, compost, or green mulch.

2. Weed: Weeds are an essential part of my ecosystem. I have stopped pulling weeds in some beds, and instead I tear them off at the ground and use them as mulch. This method leaves the soil untilled; tilling exposes new seeds, and you just get more weeds. But I still pull weeds that are close to my veggie plants.
3. Pick off cucumber beetles: They are striped yellow and black bugs that feed on leaves and stems, and a large infestation can defoliate plants. They also spread the deadly bacterial wilt disease.
4. Aphids: Wherever I see aphids, I can look also for little golden clutches of ladybugs eggs. (cabbage moth eggs look similar but maybe not in a cutch?)
5. Deadhead herbs and flowers often.
6. Peas: When peas are done, let the last peas dry on the vine.

3. Drying peas:

My peas have all turned brown, so I pulled them out to make room for more beans. It's best to let beans and peas dry on the vine, then collect them when they are starting to turn brown, with the seeds rattling inside.

Supplies: Shallow cardboard box, wax paper or screening, collected pea seeds, sticky notes, pen.

 

Mis en place for drying seeds: 

1. Prepare yourself: Take a few minutes to gather your supplies and clear a drying area in a cool, dark room; in my case, a counter in my studio. Then set an intention to honor each seed by giving it what it needs to survive. (If you create a love connection between you and the seeds, its got to help them grow better next year!)
2. Choose a small cardboard box for each type of seed, and put a layer of wax paper or screen mesh in the bottom (not paper towel or anything they may stick to).
3. Spread out the seeds so they don't touch - leave peas in the pods until completely dry.
4. Label and date the box, and leave to rest for a week to ten days before gently stirring them with your finger. (If you are like me, you will need to set reminders on your phone or calendar.)
5. Let them dry for another two to three weeks. At this point, they should be dry enough to put into storage for the winter.
6. Pack and label seeds with name, variety and the date you collected them. (Use saved seed within one year.)
7. Store in glass containers, tightly sealed, in the refrigerator.

4. July planting tips:

The only summer plants that can still be planted outdoors from seed are bush beans (before mid-July).

July is also when to start some greens from seed to overwinter, such as kale, but they need to be started indoors where you can control the water and heat, then set them out later, when the temperature is consistently below 90º. 

Start these seeds in pots toward the end of July:

• Broccoli
• Cabbage
• Kale
• Lettuces
• Over wintering onions (for an early spring harvest.)

Start Pak choy and spinach a little later, in early August.