Fall Garden

It’s August 3, and time to start thinking about the autumn food garden.

Starting seeds now, while it’s really warm, will give them a good start before they go into the ground. This season, I’m going to put in a lot of garlic. We didn’t have nearly enough this summer. Garlic planted in autumn will slowly put out roots all winter. 

Come spring, it will start to really grow. By August or sooner, it will be ready to harvest. Fresh garlic right out of the garden is so much fresher and tastier than store bought.

More lettuces and greens seeds were planted this weekend. They like cool weather rather than warm. Although keeping our greens tucked under the towering tomatillo plants kept them safe from the sun this summer, and we still have lettuce, kale, dandelion, and arugula in the greens bed.

Fall gardening is tricky in Connecticut. It might stay reasonably warm right through to Halloween. Or things might get cold quickly. The nights are particularly perilous. Usually in this part of the world, come September, the days remain warm but the nights suddenly become very cool, sometimes cold.

I made my first tomato jam this weekend. It tastes like the essence of a ripe, red tomato, but sweet. The tomatoes are coming in like mad, and although we give away lots and eat a good amount, there’s always more than we can handle.

This is pretty much the last month of summer, so let’s enjoy it – get to the beach, swim, play, and eat ice pops - and thank Mother Earth for her many blessings. So grateful.

Think kindly of each other.

/II\

Namaste