Resting and Rejuvenating the Garden
November 1, 2009
Greetings fellow gardeners and harvesters,
The main growing season is ending, and the last big harvest is always amazingly beautiful. Once the nights fall below 50 degrees most flowering plants start shutting down and start focusing on maturing their seeds. Don’t forget to save some seeds—collect them, let them dry out, then label them carefully and store them in a dark and dry environment. When the temperature drops below 40 most of the flowering vegetables are ready to call it quits unless the “Indian Summer” shows its surprising magic like we had this year. However, once the frost and colder temperatures truly arrive, everything changes drastically, creating new spaces in your garden that can be filled up.
Many gardeners decide to give the garden a well deserved rest, letting everything go after a little cleanup and allowing the natural cycle of rest take its course. But if you have some inspiration and want to put some extra love into your garden, you could start building your soil again and plant some to harvest as well.
Compost piles can be made with all that was in the garden—and more—having different layers piled upon each other like a sandwich. Start out with stalks, then vines, leaves, kitchen scraps, weeds and grass clippings and then start again. The organic matter should heat up and break down to be ready by spring time. If you know about the benefits of applying EM (effective micro organisms), the process will be accelerated. I love to feed the soil with the last bit of compost and mulch that has accumulated over the last few months. It’s like covering the earth with an edible blanket.
An optimum expression of love and care for your garden this time of year would be planting a cover crop. Cover crops are grown to protect and improve the soil, not to harvest. Cover crops have the potential to improve soil tilth, control erosion and weeds, and maintain organic matter in the soil. They can reduce compaction and increase water infiltration which decreases the leaching of nutrients. Cover crops retain and recycle plant nutrients (especially nitrogen) between crops, provide habitat for beneficial microorganisms, and increase plant diversity. The most commonly used cover crops are annual grasses and legumes, but some perennials and biennials can also be used—annual ryegrass, Austrian winter pea, crimson clover, hairy vetch, spring oats, winter rye, winter wheat and barley are some examples.
Besides compost, mulch, and cover crops, there should be still some space for planting greens which take little out of the soil. They are also called quick turnaround plants (45-60 days) and include lettuce, arugula, Asian greens, beet greens, mustards, radishes, and many other micro-greens. Make sure that you apply some compost and till or dig it under before planting. You can also apply it after the plants emerge by surrounding them. And it’s never too late here in the south to plant some garlic and overwintering onions.
If you’re thinking about resting yourself after a busy and extended summer season, just rake up the debris, apply some compost, and rake it in. Then throw out some wildflower seeds in a designated area. Rake it in slightly, and cover it with a little bit of straw. Some wildflowers emerge as early as February and March. Most will come later. You can also purchase some flower bulbs in your local nursery to plant in the fall. They are so easy to stick in the ground and by next spring they should emerge and bring color back into the dormant desert landscape.
If you have already established a year-round vegetable, herb, and flower garden, then you’ll find your rhythm in each season by observing the rhythm of your landscape. I also benefit greatly by visiting friends’ backyards and talking with other gardeners to learn from their experiences, exchange ideas, and form new friendships.
I hope this November brings you some serenity in a very busy world. Enjoy the changes of the season and especially the anticipation of so many wonderful celebrations of the heart and soul. Thanksgiving Day should be a reminder of how truly blessed we are. If you can share your smile with somebody, they too will feel blessed.
As always I invite you to visit us at Avalon Organic Gardens, Farm and Ranch in Tumacacori. We are open year round. We have also started a Farm Stand and are currently selling our vegetables every Thursday from 10 a.m. until noon at the Gazebo next to the Out of the Way Galleria at 26 Tubac Plaza in Tubac. Call us first (520) 603-9932 to confirm since we might change our days as the season changes.
Many blessings, Tarenta Baldeschi
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