garden Borders and beyond
Hello late summer...
There is a distinct chill in the air in the evenings as we welcome in the month of September. We are still enjoying a few hot days here and there, but fall is just around the corner.
This is a time when the garden can look a little tired. The early summer blooms have done their stuff, so it is time to do a spot of tidying up by deadheading and/or pulling up spent annuals. Until the rains come, keep up with the deep watering.
September is the time when ornamental grasses, coneflowers, asters, Japanese anemones, chrysanthemums and panicle hydrangeas strut their stuff when other plants are starting to go over. Zinnias and dahlias should be at their full glory if you regularly deadhead the spent flowers to encourage the plants to continue to flower. Consider leaving seed heads of sunflowers and coneflowers up for the wildlife. This is a good time to plan your fall planting of trees and bulbs, as well as a good time to divide and transplant your perennials. The soil is still warm, and the heat of summer is tapering off, so plants will not be as stressed when put in the ground. They will also benefit from having the fall months to settle in before the onset of winter.
in the vegetable patch
Continue to harvest your bounty...sow cover crop
The mild summer we have had so far means that the warm weather vegetables such as tomatoes and peppers are just starting to ripen. Keep your beans, cucumbers and zucchinis harvested to encourage continued fruiting. If your tomatoes are still flowering, you may want to nip off the top of all the blooms to encourage the plants to focus on ripening the green fruit instead.
Greens such as arugula, cabbage, mustard greens, cilantro, endive and lettuce can be sowed from seed in early September, but will need cloche protection to allow for harvest through the winter and/or over-wintering for a spring harvest.
If you have empty beds, consider sowing a cover crop to protect the soil from winter rains and to add organic matter. My favorite cover crop is buckwheat, as it germinates fast and is winter-killed, which means less work as I don't have to dig it in when spring arrives.
For a detailed planting calendar, please refer to:
- Seattle Tilth's "The Maritime Northwest Garden Guide" book
- Oregon Tilth planting calendar
- Oregon extension service 's monthly calendar
- Washington State University extension service's information
September Garden Tips
Enjoy this monthly column by AGC member and gardener
extraordinaire Kian S.