It has been a gorgeous, albeit dry fall here this year...last year we had an early snow in October, with a blizzard at the end of the month...praying for the snow to hold off a bit longer this year!
The garden is still producing a little bit...a trickle of beans, a cuke every few days and a few more beets to be pulled...oh, and the soybeans are almost ready!! Next year, I want to plant more of those, earlier! But the silly garden still wants to make more food...the beans and cukes are flowering and some parsley, which was covered over by bean plants that I pulled out, look like they want to give it a try.
We ended up with 20 or so of the "Crown of Thorn" gourds and six of the "Dipper Gourds". Next year I want to plant these two big climbers around a teepee frame for the kiddos...should make a nice, cool place to play on hot summer days!
The acorn squash did okay...we got four or five of those, and the butternut squash...well they suffered from uneven watering, so we only got two of those. I think next year I will relocate the box and try and be more regular in my watering ;-)
Are you planting a fall garden? I want to, but it seems from what I have read, that most people in zone 5 who do a fall garden start seeds in July and plant late August...with my back and school and canning and, well Life, that did not happen, so we will try some lettuce, spinach and kale and see what happens, and plan better for next year. I need to get a cover made for one end of the garden to keep the snow off the plants...hmmmm, where IS that honey-do list?
Today, I put up 8 pints of plum jam - YUM! I had been hoping someone would say they had extra plums, and don't you know, today I got a bag full!! Thanks Ang!!
Overall, I have been pretty happy with my Square Foot Garden. It was a good trial run. Now I know NOT to plant pole beans around corn if you want to actually get corn off the plants. I also discovered that nine bush bean plants will completely take over three squares instead of the one square that they were supposed to inhabit! And speaking of pole beans, no one told me I needed
light poles for them to climb! The crazy things climbed up anything they could find, and when there was nothing there, they bent over and then climbed back up AGAIN!
Next year, I plan to start my cukes inside to give them a jump start on the short growing season we have here. I also plan to get beets, kale, lettuces, spinach, chard and sweet peas into an early garden...now I just need to figure out who will be willing to come and water the seedlings while we are in GA, relaxing on the beach, watching the waves crash on the shore at Cumberland Island....I will be willing to pay in veggies later - any takers?
