Fall has well and truly arrived here. You can smell it in the air. You can see it all round you. The flowers are on the wain, the summer crops are yellowing and have almost stopped producing harvestable veg...and the ground is undergoing a change as well--the spent plants are being removed and the ground is either being planted with green manure or it is covered with dead plant debris to protect it from the harmful UV-rays of the sun as well as the elemental ravageing during the winter. One of the neighbour ladys has been ill this summer and is still not well. She has decided to let us pick apples from her trees for the Food Bank. While there I noticed a yellow jacket's nest in the underbrush. I spoke to other gardners in the area and learned that a couple of folks had been stung whilst picking apples there. One was a huge reaction that was some 8 x 12 inches! OUCH! Poor lady. She was in quite a bit of pain for two days and nights. The people that pick up the trash here are also responsible for the removal of pests, so we gave them a call. They came the next day and they sprayed some powder near their entrance and the man said that it works like ant powder--the yellow jackets take it into the nest, they eat it and subsequently die. Good riddence. I have been stung twice by those beasts in my own garden and my bride once. They seem to be particularly aggressive this year. The past few days we have been clearing various beds and planting green manure and transplanting strawberry plantlets for the coming season. We're not finished by a long shot, but here you can see some of the patches in the old lottie. This was taken a few days ago and since then, we have finished this area. The greenhouse was the next area that needed attention and the tom plants had their final denuding. As you can see the plants are yellowing and are at their end. I am leaving the toms on the plants in hopes that they will ripen further. I removed more than half of the marigold foliage while I was at it. If you look closely, you can see how tall those plain little Marigolds have gotten. I guess it was the heat and the Epsom Salts. The paprikas are over to the left of these toms (just off camera). I have let them alone and am continuing to give them water. The honeybees are still buzzing around the flower garden as well as frequenting the Phacelia that I have planted as green manure. This late afternoon shot depicts a bee gathering the last bit of nectar before heading back to the hive for the night. As I said the harvests are becoming more and more meagre. Here is the last harvest. Not alot, but don't those "chocolate paprikas" look nice all piled-up there on top of the runners? I am enjoying working in the lotties now that it isn't so hot. I wonder how much longer I can harvest veg.
Ummm, I'd say your lottie looks ready for autumn. Very tidy and neat. Your last veggies look deliciuos too. I hope the wasp nest is well and truly lifeless by now.
Reading this post made me pause to think about how exciting the summer has been in your lottie. It's good to have a bit of a rest, or at least cooler weather. I'm starting to think about how best to put my yard beds to rest too.... learning a lot from you. Just looking again at the pics -- are those marigolds growing BEHIND the toms?? Would you mind saying something about green manure? What is it exactly?
Things are looking pretty clean. Thinking back on this summer-you've deffinatly been busy with your flower and vege gardens. Its good to take a rest now. Your marigolds under those toms are looking good yet.
I sure like your pictures. I doubt that I've ever had a garden as neat looking as yours. I love your tomatoes. I usually plant marigolds with my tomatoes, too. dooley
Looks good Sjoerd. I have started stripping the foliage from my toms but they are still going strong. We really seem to be a month behind you know. You overtook us during early summer. Those peppers look fab! What will you do with them? I still have lots of root veggies in the ground and am praying for rain so I can dig the things out!
Thanks DROOPY. I had a quick peek at the wasp nest, and I stood for five full minutes and did notr see one wasp fly to or from the nest site, so I am hopeful. DAISY--Yes, those are indeed marigolds behind the tom plants. I reckon that they are about four feet tall, when they should be more or less eight inches. Amazing. I had removed at least a foot of growth from the ones in the foreground either side of the little path. They were so long that they hung over the sides of the path like "hanging lobelia". It made walking in and out a bit difficult but on the otherhand brushing the plants caused them to release their fragrance which aphids seem not to tolerate well. That afterall, was their purposein there. As for the Green manure...well, I shall try and say this as delicately as I can: There is, shall we say, Brown Manure and there is Green Manure. You understand that the brown manure has an alimentary origin and the green manure (which can more properly be enclosed with inverted commas [quotation marks], I think), is just simply plants that one grows purely for the purpose of conditioning the soil. It is turned under or left to decompose on top of your garden earth. What does Green Manure actually DO for the soil? Well, it improves the soil quality in the following ways (taken from some notes that I made a while researching some time ago back): Increases the organic content of soil Increases nutrient availability to your plants Improves the tilth of soil Lessens the growth of weeds to a degree Increases biological activity in the soil. Some examples are, Phacelia, Borage, Yellow Lupin, Clover and buckwheat in more temperate regions. Green manure is ideally dug into your soiul about three weeks before planting your main crops (or annual flowering plants; however, I plant it at any time, but most commonly towards the end of the growing season to use during the winter months. The pro's also say that it is important to dig it under before they begin to flower, but I ignore this with Phacelia because the honeybees here really like it quite a lot. Thanks so much for your nice words, PETUNIA. I am trying to go easy now, but there is still more cleaning, harvesting, planting and soil treatment yet to do. I noticed that the most recent green manure planting is up (Yellow Lupine). Sadly a varmint of some description has run amok in it and all seeds were uprooted last night. I tamped it all back down and watered it thoroughly, hoping that the new little roots will still make it. DOOLEY--I am glad to hear that you combine marigolds with your toms too. I never really am 100% sure that there was any benefit, but hearing that you do it too, makes me think that it is indeed helpful to use them together. Thanks so much, EJ. I am so amazed this year, Emma. I don't think that we have ever been ahead of you over here...much less a MONTH! As you know, we are usually behind you guys. Those peppers have been cleaned and chopped and frozen for cooking use later on. I still have several in the greenhouse which I am waiting for to get good and red. I still have four beetroot patches, a row of pastinaak, Swiss chard, Perp. spinach, Runner beans, courgettes. As you can see, one or two more harvests and the toms will be finished. As perhaps you can see on the plot piccy, the Purple Sprouting Spinach is in. I have another patch over in the "New Lottie".
Once again a post to put in my favorites to refer to in a few weeks when I am back in the garden. I plant marigolds near toms too. For the record.
I think I do it because my mom did. It's supposed to make the nemotodes leave the tomatoes along. I saw a picture of nemotodes the other day. I don't think I even thought about what one looked like. You can't see them unless they are magnified. dooley
It sure is, Netty. Oh well, I have crops for the winter and I feed birds during the winter, so there are still things to look foreward to--just alot less. Ok then Daisy-- I made a note in the record book. The list is growing.
