End-of-Season Gardening Tips

The garden has been put to bed for the winter.

End-of-season gardening, a sad time for gardeners. The plants have been pulled. Perhaps some carrots and beets are still in the ground able to stay safe until the big freeze occurs. Be sure to pull them when the weatherman calls for freezing temperatures so the vegetables do not freeze, then rot in the ground. Allow them to dry after pulling in order to store them for the winter stews and soups.

Because we leave for Florida in the fall, my DH cleans out everything. He roto-tilled the garden in order to break up the soil and planted winter rye. The rye comes up, then in the spring, he turns it under to give more nutrients to the soil.

In the photo you can see the strawberry bed which will winter over. These are June bearing strawberries. The snow cover will keep them warm in the winter. I know that sounds impossible, but snow is a good insulator for the plants.

For more end-of-season garden tips, read another article previously posted here.

Now is the time to finish up your garden journal. Make notes while you have next year's plan swirling in your head. Before you know it, you'll be planting seed and digging in your garden next spring.

Toilet Paper and Beet Seeds



Yes, this is Scott's toilet paper with beet seeds glued to it.



My ever resourceful DH is using toilet paper to plant beet seeds. He mixes flour and water in the cap of a gallon milk jug, lays out the TP on the table, dips the beet seed into the flour glue with tweezers and then sets the seed in a row. After they are glued on, he gently folds the paper over, digs a trench in the garden soil, and places the strip into the ground and covers.

This method of planting beets is certainly easier on the back and knees. He also plants radish seed this way now too. He experimented this summer in our Michigan garden using newspaper, but the little roots couldn't get through the newspaper. The TP is perfect for the roots to establish themselves.

My DH also mentioned that after the seed sprouts, remove extra sprouts in order to make a nice size beet.