The Swiss Chard That I Planted Along the Back Fence

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Bob Bauer
September 08, 2017 (Last Updated: ) | Reading Time: 1 minutes

September 08, 2017

The Swiss chard that I planted along the back fence, so I could let it go to seed without it being messy in front of the greenhouse, has obliged me. It also germinated a bunch of seeds in front of the pathway. I don't think small plants like they are will overwinter, but I'm going to put my mini greenhouses over them when it gets cold and give it a try. It's time to get your garlic and onion patches weeded, raked and mulched. You don't want to be working the soil in the rainy month of November..

Wet soil compacts easily and should be avoided even in the pathways. When you begin to realize how much of a living organism the earth beneath your feet is, you start to walk lightly. Your pea row should be ready by February to just poke your finger in the ground and drop a seed in, walking on a plank if nesesary..

September 09, 2017

You can start picking off the flowers on your tomato plants if you want all their energy to go into ripening the fruit already formed. Trimming off some bottom branches helps also. It might be the stress that causes them to ripen more quickly, or just that the plant has less foliage to attend to. Keep in mind that you can hang the plants upside down in a sheltered area like a garage or shop, before the hard freezes arrive, and lots of the fruit will continue to ripen. Trimming them now makes it more likely you'll be able to lift them..

It's also a good time to move your strawberries. I don't know why, I just read that and thought I'd share. I could Google it and tell you why, but that would rob you of an opportunity to learn and grow. Every time I Google anything I learn way more than I needed and discover an endless body of information..

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