September 19, 2018
I got to plant lettuce starts yesterday. They were 8" tall and root bound. Most of the veggies I've gotten in 6 packs and 4 packs have their roots circling around the the bottom of the cell. This is a result of being too long in the container. The roots need to be guided away from the root ball so they won't continue their circular journey. If the plastic plant marker that comes with them isn't sufficient to lift the roots off the bottom you will end up breaking some..
It's preferable to leaving them alone, because the plant will be stunted if they are allowed to grow around in a circle. Breaking some of the bottom roots means the plant will be stressed for awhile and need some shade and extra water. It will be dependent on the seed starting mix its been growing in for water so daily dosing is needed. Water from the surrounding soil doesn't seem to work it's way into the root ball so sometimes I water them twice daily..
September 20, 2018
September is the time of year we plant flower bulbs for an early spring show of eye candy. The only thing preventing you from filling up your flower beds with them is their cost. All the garden centers have them on sale now, so maybe this year you could splurge a little. Winters always seem long with their gray days and chilly weather so the first sign of spring is welcome. I start looking for signs in the middle of winter and have found numerous indications that the process of rebirth begins right after the hard freezes are over..
The buds on the oak trees start me thinking about spring, and the buttercup leaves are much earlier to appear than you would expect. You can detect the beginnings of many wild flowers by taking a closer look at the ground. Willow branches begin to change color and the buds go through several morphs. What we sometimes call winter grass is often the starting shoots of spring grass..
September 21, 2018
September is traditionally the best month to start a new lawn. I don't know about this year though, we're dry as a bone. Global warming is causing climate change so it may be advisable in the future to plant a new lawn at first rains. The Fall planting of peas are not as tall, bushy or productive as the ones planted in the spring. I wonder if the shortening of the length of daylight is telling the plants to not produce more, but to ripen what's been pollinated already..
The tomato plants are not paying attention to summers swan song. They are still producing flowers as if there might be time to pollinate, grow, ripen and reseed. I would be wise to pinch the flowers off if I wanted all the plants energy to go into ripening what's on the vine..
