I love flowers. I love fresh-cut flowers from a florist, flowers in my meadow, flowers on my ornamental shrubs, weedy flowers that wilt in a child’s hand—I love them all. House guests recently picked up a lovely mix of cut flowers, and, although I trimmed the stems and freshened the water, a few stems did not last as long as the others. Luckily, I still have some hydrangea and aster growing right outside. I cut a few blooms and mixed them into the thoughtful gift bouquet.
I appreciate that I don’t have to grow a field of mixed flowers for cutting to have a mixed bunch on my table. Curate your own bouquet by finding the florist bundle of hard-to-grow mums or dahlias or Zone Seven greenery and pop in a few of your Berkshire showstoppers.
Since it is now fall and the garden is slowing, I felt it was time to remove what is left of the zucchini and bean plants. However, the rain and non-freezing temperatures have encouraged more fruiting. I can’t bear to take them out yet. One more week and I will. After removing zucchini, I will spread some of my finished compost and get the spot ready for planting garlic.
Bean and other legume plants (peas, soy, etc.) have roots that collect nitrogen in nodules along their length. Since they “fix” nitrogen in the soil, I will only cut off plant tops and leave the roots in place to compost slowly and improve the soil for my lettuce that will grow there next year. In the gaps, I will overseed the area with annual winter rye seed. The rye will germinate in the colder days ahead, hold the soil, and even grow. Next spring, I will cut the rye back and turn it into the soil in that part of the vegetable bed. It won’t have flowers so I won’t re-seed but will add organic material to the planting area.
I have lettuce and arugula coming along, although not as robustly as it did in May. I hope to have something to add to salads in the next couple weeks. I can still harvest beets and carrots. I have been leaving them in the garden until right before cooking so they stay moist and sweet. I intend to eat it all by Thanksgiving. If you need to harvest more than you can eat, space these root vegetables evenly apart in a bin and cover with moist—not wet—sand. Keep the bin accessible for cooking but in a cool dark place to keep through the winter.
The first frost of fall was often right around the autumnal equinox. Looking at the forecast, we may not see those low temperatures until after October 10. But I know it is coming. I will dig up the carrots because the tops will be frosted, which might affect the root flavor. For the beets, I will just hill up some straw around the crowns at about six inches deep. That should keep the beetroots warm until I prepare them for Thanksgiving.
While I leave some things in the garden as I mentioned above, I will have more material than I can bury in my three raised vegetable beds. It is easier to spread finished compost than bury a cubic yard of leaves, too. My leaves stay in a controlled pile near the compost bin to supply “the brown” to the compost for every dose of “green” from my kitchen.
With all that potential frost-killed foliage, it is a fine time to start or expand your composting program. For leaves, sticks, and other organic garden material, a simple pile out of the way will be a good start. By spring, the material will have started to break down; by next fall, you should be able to scoop composted material from the bottom of the pile.
To get compost faster, you will want to have a walled bin with rodent-proof sides where you can add kitchen food scraps along with yard waste. A contained pile is easier to turn and as a result, I turn it more often. Also, breaking yard waste into smaller pieces will help speed the process. Make your bin at least three feet by three feet by three feet or larger to get good heat buildup in the pile’s center. Avoid putting too much of any one thing in the mix; one moldy onion would be fine, but a moldy bag might be too much for your microorganisms to handle. Weeds gone to seed and weeds known for aggressive runners should also be put in the trash or you will spread weeds everywhere.
The cool, damp weather of late has me thinking of our wood stove, and we cranked it up briefly to get the damp out. Here is a reminder that wood stoves will dry out your houseplants, too. Check their location and water levels as needed. If you are thirsty, they are thirsty.
Another critter found our dry indoors preferable to the dampness outside. I noticed a brown stink bug on my cut sunflower. I don’t think he was on the plant when I cut it, but maybe. Anyway, he prompted the point that marmorated stink bug adults will find their way indoors as the temperatures drop just like some lady beetles, boxelder bugs, and crickets. They are harmless unless you pass out from their stink. Don’t squish them. Help them back outside and try to seal any gaps around windows and doors.
I call myself the Lazy Berkshire Gardener because I don’t want to work too hard in my gardens. I want to enjoy them. I find it easier to observe my landscape and let the compost happen, the water pool up, or daisies to self-sow. I look for ways to do the minimum task for the biggest impact. For example, mulching is better than spraying and much better than weeding all season. I look for beautiful, low-maintenance plants that thrive in or at least tolerate my garden conditions. Plus, I’m willing to live with the consequences if I miss something.
