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Fall Friendly – Farming
Written By: Deena Bouknight | Issue: September - 2022
Local fields aren’t fallow during this crucial month. You shouldn’t be, either.
Even though many a gardener’s mindset is to cultivate inspring and summer only, some produce can be realizedduring the fall months as well.“The last frost is between September 17 and into October. So youhave to get the plants into the ground, and some of these plantscan tolerate cold weather,” says local farmer Malcolm Banks.Typically, fall crops are in the ground sometime in August, buthe advised green thumbers to finish starting seeds inside forfall crops like Brussels sprouts and other heading brassicas, andthen get them in the ground.“Seeds can also be sown for a late crop of leaf lettuce, mustardgreens, Swiss chard, and spinach in the partial shade of tallerplants,” said Banks. “And when Labor Day is near, directly addto gardens such seeds as kohlrabi, kale and collards.”Further items on a Banks’ To Do Fall List for his own farm –and good advice for gardeners – is to:• maintain a raspberry patch, after the last raspberries areharvested, by pruning out old flowering canes by leaving onlythree to four young canes per foot of row, and then wait untilspring to prune back shoot tips;•order and plant spring flowering bulbs for next year’s earlyflower display, and choose bulbs with different flowering timesto extend the season;• continue deadheading flowers, which will allow plants to useenergy reserves for a final flower display;• be careful not to forget about hanging baskets and containerplantings by checking moisture content daily to determine ifwatering is needed;•remove old plants from containers, baskets, and gardens thathave stopped producing to eliminate a shelter for insects anddisease organisms;•control/eradicate any evident weeds before they go to seed andwreak havoc next spring and summer;•sow seeds of biennials, such as hollyhock, Canterbury bells,and foxglove;• till or hoe beds where nothing will be planted in the fall;• dig potatoes after vines have died;• and check pumpkins and harvest by cutting the vine andleaving about two inches of stem.Banks’ Yellow Mountain Garden offers hand-made soaps, CSA(Community Shared Agriculture) seasonal produce boxes,houseplants, meats, and much more. For more information visityellowmountaingarden.com.
by Deena Bouknight / photo by Mary Gillan
