fall garden time

FALL GARDEN TIME
if you live in central texas this is the best time of
the year to garden
from the fall through the winter to the early springtime


in mid october put out corn gluten as a weed preventer
it will act also as a mild fertilizer for your yard
it inhibits seeds from sprouting
so put some out if you want to stop those winter weeds
also repeat this in february to prevent the spring weeds

if you plan on seeding grass on an area dont put out the
corn gluten since the seeds wont sprout
the same for wildflower seeds

also mid october is the time to put our wildflower seeds
i get mine from the native american seed company at
www.seedsource.com

i look for bare ground rake the soil some
throw down the seeds rake them in and  walk on them
then nature does the rest

you can also get native grasses to seed in bare areas
in your yard but thats better to do in late april
i use thunderturf which has buffalo blue grama and
curly mesquite
its the grass that was meant to be in this area
you plant them just like the wildflowers

in my garden

the okra are still producing it seems like everyday i have
to pick them
my tomatoes some left from the spring the others i planted
and protected in july are just now producing tomatoes
if we have a late frost this year we should have good
tomato production

right before the first frost we pick all of them wrap them
in newspaper and we just put them in a five gallon bucket
taking them out when they get ripe
our most delicious juicy tomatoes have been grown this way

our peppers planted this spring have exploded both in the
growth of the plants and the numbers of blooms and new
peppers
the plants will get so large they will have to be tied up

our basil is exploding again
pesto here we come in a few weeks

our egg plants we planted this spring are kicking in again
with blooms so we should get another crop out of them

the squash we planted are now blooming

the cucumbers we planted were loved too much by the
grasshoppers so they are gone

so this fall we plan to plant
carrots beets lettuce spinach swiss chard arugula bokchoy
broccoli brussel sprouts cabbage garlic 100 of these
asian greens sweet peas
then in late january we plant onions and potatoes

here is how i do it

i rake the beds well
add 3 inches of good compost
the best is the one you make yourself otherwise get a good
organic compost like ladybug brand composts available at
all nurseries in this area
work this into the top of the soil if you want
i just plant my stuff in the compost




add a good organic fertilizer like ladybug brand 8-2-4 or
medinas growing green
i sprinkle it on top of the compost per the bags recommendation
a bag of this lasts me several seasons as does these other ingredients


i then sprinkle cottonseed meal lightly just enough to put
a yellowish tint to the soil

mix this all together if you want i dont though


if planting a transplant i sprinkle some worm casting in the hole
before i plant the veggie


when i plant the transplant i water it in with a good liquid fertilizer
i use johns recipe from ladybug since it has sea weed and
fish emulsion in it
this will give the plant a boost to get it starting

for lettuce and carrots and beet seeds i put them in a shaker
and spread them over the area i want then to grow
lightly dusting them with compost and or soil
watering them gently every day until i see them sprout
dont let them dry out or they will die

i start with a few lettuce transplants then rely on the seeded ones
to sprout for future crops
i plant the lettuce and beets and carrots every two weeks until
i run out of room in my garden that way ill have crops all winter

when the lettuce grows up i cut them off with a pair of scissors
like mowing the grass
the stub left will develop into a new crop of lettuce
you will have lettuce all winter long

you can also trim the beets leaves and eat them in salads

i also plant spinach plants every two weeks
i personally dont mess with the seeds since i have trouble getting
them to sprout

i also use pvc pipe bent over my beds so i can put row cover over
the plants if it gets too hot or if we get freezing  weather

follow this and you will be successful
main reason this doesnt work if the plants arent watered enough
or too much
or you let a hot spell burn them or if you let freezing weather
freeze them

your shadow has to be in the garden frequently for this to work

good luck on the garden
dont miss this best time to garden
very few bugs usually good rains

the organicgreen doctor