Fall Gardening

Autumn is here and our garden is still producing for us.  In the past, we either didn't get the fall crops started at the right time or we didn't have the ambition and energy to tackle a fall garden.  This year however, the stars must have aligned because fall gardening is in full force!  

Using row covers is definitely the way to go with pest control and keeping jack frost from nipping the plants.  The pea pods in the back of the picture are exposed to the elements because they don't have pest problems and can tolerate the frosts. 

The Oregon Sugar Pods were planted the second week of August and have produced several bowls of delicious pods for three weeks. 

Arugula is thriving but the lettuce has been slow. 

The beets were planted at the same time as the pea pods and the kale were transplanted the first week of September.

The brassicas (cabbage, broccoli, and brussel sprouts) were transplanted the second week of August.

The celery was planted in the spring and limped along all summer with frequent watering.  Now that fall has arrived, the plants are thriving with crisp stalks that are excellent in soups!

Paul spotted a large preying mantis on top of the row cover a few weeks ago.

A giant hornworm was found on a ground cherry plant last week.  These suckers are huge and stripped the plant of all its leaves!