September garden

[AnalogPackrat]

I guess I'm just really surprised, I can only remember a couple times it frosted here in October and we're a couple hundred miles further north and I looked at the weather and you folks are pretty consistently about 10 degrees warmer. My dad's usually got tomatoes still growing in the garden in November and my basil is still outside.

We had three nights in a row below freezing a couple of weeks ago where I live in the south. Baltimore is a semi-coastal city and the water is a big moderating influence on temperatures, especially now when ocean temps are still relatively warm. My parents live 60 miles east of me, but near a large lake. They experience temperatures 5-10 degrees warmer in winter because the lake water never gets below 50 degrees.

 

[JohnRoberts]

We had three nights in a row below freezing a couple of weeks ago where I live in the south. Baltimore is a semi-coastal city and the water is a big moderating influence on temperatures, especially now when ocean temps are still relatively warm. My parents live 60 miles east of me, but near a large lake. They experience temperatures 5-10 degrees warmer in winter because the lake water never gets below 50 degrees.

+1.. I recall when I lived up in CT. The towns near the long island sound coast were noticeably warmer (in winter/cooler in summer). The ocean is like a heat sink with huge thermal mass moderating weather temperature extremes.

Since I grew up in the north I try not to complain about MS winters but my garden plants still notice a hard freeze.The coldest I ever felt was walking guard duty around empty buildings at Ft Riley, KS in the middle of winter.

JR

 

[fazer]

Being in Colorado, we get early freezes. We got to middle of October and it was not a hard freeze so some plants got through ok. But everything comes to an end and cold is next.

 

[JohnRoberts]

yup, thats why climate is averaged over decades....

This time of the year I notice even live plants growing slower. I always assumed this slower growth was due to less sunlight, but suspect overnight temps also have an influence.

JR

 

[JohnRoberts]

My granny smith apple tree offered up a thanksgiving surprise. I have been waiting for it to go dormant so I can prune it for next year, but noooo its making blossoms.

JR

 

[cyrano]

Happens here too. I've seen several species flowering or budding. Also, Hemlock is popping up everywhere.

 

[JohnRoberts]

I just turned on the heat inside my mini greenhouse and started 10 sets of seeds for my garden this coming spring. Its a little early but I feel lucky, I had lots of seeds left over from previous years.

JR

2x squash
2x bell pepper
2x tomato
2x cucumber
2x canteloupe

 

[JohnRoberts]

I just got the 7 plants that germinated into the raised beds. I will start another round of seeds in my heated greenhouse JIC we get a sneaky late freeze.

JR

 

[fazer]

We are Germinating Tomato and other veggie plants but won't be able to plant till Mothers Day. I envy warmer climates.

 

[JohnRoberts]

The popular (redneck) wisdom around here is that we could get a freeze as late as easter...

I feel lucky tho.

JR

 

[AnalogPackrat]

Supposed to be another cooling trend in the SE next week. Hopefully no more frosts. We had four nights below freezing ending a couple of days ago. Two nights down to 26F. I draped moving blankets over my blueberries and azaleas. Seemed to have limited the damage. Hard to say if we're past it all or not.

 

[JohnRoberts]

That last hard freeze killed some early leaves on my fig tree.

I feel lucky from here,,, but the worst case is I have to plant another round.

JR

 

[JohnRoberts]

I just put 10 new sets of seeds into my heated greenhouse JIC we have a late frost.

If no frost I will put more plants in my beds staggered.

JR

 

[JohnRoberts]

I am starting to figure out that some of my tender new sprouts, just planted outside, were damaged by the wind gusts this week... The skinny seedlings with tiny leaves (like tomato plants) are all OK. A couple of the sprouts with big heavy fat leaves (cucumber, and cantaloupe) suffered some wind damage. They aren't all dead, but some not looking very good... It's still early so plenty of time to recover.

JR

 

[crazydoc]

My wife started a couple hundred tomato and pepper seeds last week. Tomatoes are up and need to be transplanted into separate pots and under grow lights. Peppers not up yet.
Outside temp was 20F this morning, and another snow storm on the way, so it will be awhile before I prep the garden.

 

[JohnRoberts]

Of my first round planting, the tomato sprouts are the best looking. The squash, cucumber, and cantaloupe sprouts look broken or physically injured. Not dead yet, but not standing up under their own support.

The early leaves died and dropped off of my fig tree, with no replacements in sight. Most of my other fruit trees are showing new leaves and blossoms. My pecan trees that are usually safely late, are starting to show signs of life. I still need to do a winter dormant oil spray (to kill insect eggs), but it remains too windy to spray. If I wait too long the tassels will be dropping pollen and it'l be too late to spray.

I have a second round of seeds started so one way or the other, I'll have a vegetable garden this year. I was gambling on an early start but didn't expect wind damage to be the risk.

JR

PS; for chuckles I dumped a couple hundred several years old seeds into a tray of dirt... So far there are about 20-30 of either cucumber or cantaloupe sprouts (short fat leaves probably cucumber), and less than 10 of one other (?) plant. A little surprising how many old seeds were dead as a doornail.

 

[crazydoc]

Garden's ready for the plants when the weather's a little better. Crab apple trees are blooming (for pollination of other apple trees.) Deer and ground squirrels eat all the regular apples before they ripen, so sort of pointless to have these, but look nice.

 

[JohnRoberts]

I am already seeing flowers and squash growing on one of my 4 squash plants. This will likely result in too many squash. I have 4 tomato plants doing well. So far my peppers, cucumber, and cantaloupe plants have not prospered outside my heated greenhouse. Looking at the long term weather forecast looks like time to finish populating the raised bed garden (over night lows forecast in the 60s).

My fig tree took a bad hit from that late hard frost. Looks like all the upper branches are dead and drying up. The tree is not dead and pushing several new up-shoots up from the roots. It will take years to get back to where we were.

The frost damped my several fruit trees. I see two peaches growing on my young peach tree (first season with fruit if these keep growing, last year's one peach fell off before maturing). 5 apples on my young Granny Smith tree. Second season but last year there were too many apples for the young branches to hold. This years lighter load is better. 2 or 3 Johnathan apples on that front yard tree (second season).

As typical my young plum trees blossomed too early so no fruit, again.

Early blueberries got trashed by hard freeze, but both blueberry bushes are still alive and well.

I remain optimistic about this years pecan crop, lots of pollen tassels still up on the trees, making tiny nuts.

JR

PS; I couldn't figure why several of my seedlings died after moving them outside, so I tried to experiment to see if low overnight temps were the cause, but my experiment failed to deliver results since the overnight temps didn't drop below 50'. It looks like it time for the garden plants to get serious.

 

[crazydoc]

Got the tomatoes (42) and peppers (60) planted over weekend. Carrots and beets under shade boards on the left. Frosts are over I think, though milk cartons and plastic cups will offer some protection.

 

[AnalogPackrat]

I've harvested two and a half quarts of blueberries so far. Glad I took the time to throw some moving blankets over my bushes during the April frosts. There are a lot more berries out there. My new apple trees got their blossoms burned, so no fruit this year.

Today's pickings: