This is probably my favorite time of year. Had so much to harvest this year from our veggie garden, which brings with it lots of work canning and preserving the bounty.
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From the fire roasted tomato salsa...
to the jars of canned tomatoes...
plus pickles and sauerkraut!
Best year for the preserving and canning by far. So now it was time to prepare for next season, cleaning up the garden, and trying my hand at growing garlic.
I covered my garden in straw this year, which was the best thing I ever did. I have always battled the weeds, and this year with the introduction of the straw the weeding was to a minimum! YAY! I hate to weed, along with most of us gardeners I'm sure. Plus I watered less, and I'm improving the soil. Win win all the way around.
I pulled back the straw to put the individual bulbs in the ground, and once the greens start popping up, I'll put the straw back around them to cover the ground.
Seventeen garlic bulbs got planted, and I'm excited to see how they turn out. First year garlic plant underway!
Any tips for growing garlic out there? This first timer could use any helpful hints you all have!
The other item of business I needed to take care of was my blackberries. I had several bushes bear fruit, but not quite as plentiful as I had hoped. Needed to do some searching on the care of blackberries, and what I might be doing wrong. The first place I always check is Mother Earth News, probably my favorite place to get veggie and fruit growing information. I read an article Growing Berries in Your Own Backyard, which gave me some help and care for my blackberry bushes. I decided to start from the beginning. I don't know which ones had produced fruit in previous years and which hadn't, so cut them down I did.
Thought this would be the best way to start anew with my growing blackberry patch.
Plus all the clippings go into my compost bin to add better soil next year. Looking forward to more blackberries in the summers to come.
Happy gardening, even late into the fall!
-K-
