In my last post, I talked about a few hardy vegetables that still remain in my garden. Even though we've had at least 4 or 5 light frosts, these vegetables can still survive:
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| Leeks |
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| Lettuce Blend, Carrots, Swiss Chard, Brussels Sprouts |
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| Leeks Galore |
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| Some Nice Carrots |
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| Ready For Use |
Once the temperatures dip down into the mid twenties, most of these won't survive with several exceptions: leeks and carrots. These can be left in the garden until the ground freezes. The cold even improves the flavor of leeks.
Last week I briefly touched on amending garden soil. Fall is a great time of the year to do this. There are several ways this can be done, one of which is by adding compost.
Composting has become very popular. There are many commercially available devices by which kitchen and garden waste can be composted. Composting results in a beautiful, rich black soil. Adding a layer to the garden in the fall will stimulate microbes and other beneficial organisms.
Another option is to add raw organic matter such as leaves. Are you a gardener and also faced with cleaning up leaves in the fall? A great use for the fall leaves is using them to improve your garden. I have been doing this for several years, and can see a noticeable improvement in the soil.
It is best, however, to shed or mulch the leaves first. Otherwise, they probably won't decay over the winter. Mulching greatly increases the rate of decay. Also, the additional of a little fertilizer will speed the decay and also ensure all of the nitrogen in the soil isn't depleted by the decaying process.
Improving the soil will increase the ability of your garden to retain water, support healthy plant growth, and decrease plant diseases.
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| Mulched Leaves on the Garden |
Until next time.
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