What did YOU do in your garden today :P

Putting the garden to bed. After last night's frost, I lassoed Gypsy and Maverick to spend the day helping Grandma. Maverick mowed and mulched the two lawns along the driveway, while Gypsy and I cleaned the garden.

* We harvested the last bed of potatoes. Good looking Pontiac spuds that will be stored until the Yukon Golds are gone with only a few eaten as new potatoes.
* We also pulled out the last of the carrot harvest. There weren't a lot of carrots, but they look clean and delicious.
* Then we pulled all the tomato plants leaving the garden gate open and the dropped fruits for the chickens.
* Removed both beds of corn stalks and saved the few leftover ears for the chickens.
* Pulled all the flowering weeds from all 13 beds. Might get the other weeds out, but the seeding ones are a must!
* Picked some lettuce for sandwiches and some strawberries just because we could.
* Finally, we dug the begonia tubers for winter storage. I've never done that when the plants were still in flower, but I figured that since I had the help, I'd make good use of it.
* All the waste material was collected and removed from the garden. It looks pretty clean and ready for a good winter's nap.
* * I still have the beautifully flowering dahlias to dig another day and the coming week is predicted to be warmer (60s) with no frosty nights so perhaps I can save that labor for next weekend.
 
" I still have the beautifully flowering dahlias to dig another day" @Smart Red , did you have only a very light frost that your dahlia buds and blossoms survived?

Yesterday, I ran the tiller on the paths in the big veggie garden extension. Everything is in rows there but the peripheral paths are 5'. I think of the extension as 4 separate sub-gardens and the paths between are also 5'. These things give weeds plenty of room to get started.

There is a chance of rain & some wind, today. I think it would be best to getting a better start on clean-up in the little veggie garden. All I've been doing there is my regular burying of compostables. Those frost killed and damaged garden plants are compostable - there are a couple beds that could be dug and filled even without pulling any of the remaining root crops. Of course, the carrots, parsnips and celery root have to come home, sometime!

Steve
 
digitS' said:
" I still have the beautifully flowering dahlias to dig another day" @Smart Red , did you have only a very light frost that your dahlia buds and blossoms survived?

Steve
Click to expand...
It wasn't a hard frost and it didn't come close to the (warmth) of the brick wall or under the trees. . . yet. The dahlias are still flowering beautifully and profusely. We are predicted to have at least until Monday next of night temps in the mid to upper 40's (F) so they should be good for a while yet.

I usually don't dig mine until they've had a good freeze. I also usually don't know the color of the tubers I am storing. This year I hope to avoid that annual problem and harvest while the color is still on the plants.
 
Multi-color strings with a little note-taking can help with ID'ing dahlias.

There's a lot of bending, with the head under the plants but it may be worth it. Especially so, if you are getting more and more of the most vigorous while some of the others are being squeezed out. Or . . . you have various heights and the little guys get hidden behind the others.

My dahlia garden has been a near-wreck since the 2nd week of September. I told DW that, "look, so many of the buds are undamaged! They will bloom." Upper third of the leaves black and now falling off. Many, many of what looked like undamaged buds, just .... died!

I've never dug the dahlias until the tops were dead nearly to the ground. They still aren't there yet!!

Steve
 
I dug a garden row so I can fill it with chicken litter, tomorrow, hopefully. I ordered a 50' roll of Agribon 19 from Johnny's this morning. Or was it yesterday? Anyway, I hope it doesn't frost too hard till I get it and create my "low tunnel."
Today was a beautiful day, as have been the last 3 or 4. There's lots of garden/flower bed work I could be doing, but haven't managed to do much. I did get some old cuke and bean vines torn down yesterday. Fall makes me lazy.
 
I pulled the bush beans and cucumber plants, and some weeds. I brought in more parsley and the last of the basil to dehydrate. I cut kale today and loaded the dehydrator. I keep bringing tomatoes in and let them finish ripening in the house. This way there will not be so many green ones to bring in when the freeze comes. I still have pole beans, enough for a meal now and then and probably brought the last of the squash in. DH built some compost bins, raked leaves into a pile, and I have a lot of rabbit manure read to put on the garden soon. I hope to get the kale froze in the next few days and figure out where to plant garlic.
 
WHAT a weird year! We have had 3 frosts and NONE of them had been on the ground. I made two hay runs, consecutive days, and my truck's windshield had a layer of ice both mornings, but ALL of my annuals, AND my tomatoes AND my peppers and even my okra is still alive and trying to produce. I am still harvesting zucchini, and I may even get one more small okra harvest.
 
I did some weeding and checked on the beans to cull any plants who were not up to scratch.
 
Leaves falling, so mulching garden with them. 1 maple tree did 1/3 of garden Waiting on rest to fall

Planted garlic for next year.
 
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