Is October really here ? It ’s been a recollective , hot and very dry summertime that has stress gardens and gardeners likewise . I ’m a raise bed vegetable nurseryman and love the economies of dirt direction , weeding and watering that are my normal dividend .
This year however , the watering became burdensome , and if I ’m honest , I really did n’t keep up with it . In gain , I had reek bugs everywhere and for the first time , squirrels eating the tomatoes .
Recently , the cervid , which seem skinnier than normal , seem to be less picky than usual in their food choice . It ’s been a tough summertime for all of us outdoor mammal . Let ’s hope that fall brings both cooler conditions and some pelting .
On the positive side , if you planted some fall crop last month , they should be approaching harvestability . A ripe downfall / early winter harvest helps us forget the problematic summertime and recharge exuberance for winter garden care and bound planting .
If you are seek to nurse summer crops deeply into the dusk , frost worry become a condition . The next few paragraphs are borrowed from last year ’s article spell by Cleve Campbell . They ply a nice list of suggestions to help preclude freeze price :
October is paranoia time of year because in our area , it is the first frost calendar month — usually around the 15th of the calendar month . It can arrive earlier or later , but we know it is run to happen ; we just do n’t recognise exactly when . I always have pepper needing just a trivial more time to turn to that brilliant red or gross prosperous icteric , or tomatoes on one plant or the other that are slow in ripen , or that one lettuce seam that is just starting to rock , so I am glued to the atmospheric condition report card , trying to catch that first freeze warning . I ca n’t weigh the times we ’ve had a frost , and then right afterwards , Indian summertime point up smile and bringing temperature in the 70 and 80s for a couple of week after all the frost legal injury is done . I have finally come to the conclusion that await for that freeze monition is too tardy because there areprecautions that can be taken to strain the growing time of year before that dreaded frost forecast .
There aretwo types of frost , advective and irradiation . Advective Robert Frost takes place when a cold front sweeps into an region . A radioactivity frost happen under calm winds and unmortgaged sky , allowing effulgent heat from the earth to rise to the upper layers of the atmosphere . With radiation hoarfrost , the lack of wind prevents mixing of the air and an inversion develops . An eversion is just a fancy way of allege “ thing get turn around from the normal . ” ordinarily the air closest to the ground is the warmest , but when an inversion happens , cold melody collect near the ground while the warmer air dwell above the trapped cold atmosphere . During an inversion , stale gentle wind is just like water bunk down a hill — it seeks the lowest point because it is heavy than warm melodic line , and Robert Frost pocket may form . The first frost typically is a radiation Robert Frost that occurs on a unagitated , clear night .
There are several matter we can do when a hoar warning is issued :
Harvest early : inflorescence plant life such as edible bean , tomatoes , peppers , eggplant , squash and okra need to be harvested if there is no room to protect them . Fruit reap in the ripe unripe stage will still mature , but sadly will not have the same relish as a vine - ripened fruit .
Water before a frost : dampish dirt can obtain approximately four time more heat than dry soil . Moist grime can also deal heat to the dirt surface quicker than dry soil , furnish some frost protection . A Cornell University study suggests thatthe atmosphere temperature above a wet soil is 5 ° high than that above a ironical grunge , and in the study , that departure was maintained until 6 a.m. The finish of this work was that plants could gain from watering the even before a frost .
enshroud your works : A cover can leave anywhere from 2º to 6º F of protection , depending on the type of textile used . The covers can be laid right on top of the plants or can be corroborate by stake or a frame , the main conflict being that there isless frost trade protection when the cover touch on the works . Any material can be used as cover ; however , woven fabrics are better nonconductor than charge plate or theme . The honest time to apply covers is in the late afternoon after the malarkey give out down . get rid of the screen the next break of day .
“ Hoop - House ” with credit card being used for frost protective covering
Row cover provides 2º to 6º F of rime aegis
Additional Tips and Tasks for October :
Thanks for stopping byThe Garden Shed ; we look forward to your visit next month .
Sources :
Phillips , Ben , “ Freeze Damage in Fall veg : Identifying and Preventing,”http://msue.anr.msu.edu / news / freeze_damage_in_fall_vegetables_identifying_and_preventing
Colorado State University , Publication GMG # 722 , “ Frost Protection and Extending the develop Season,”http://cmg.colostate.edu / Gardennotes/722.pdf
