And farm life continues from one season to the next. Summer crops are playing out so it’s time to clean up the fields in preparation for fall gardening. We will be pulling up all the old plants and hauling them off to prevent disease and insect infestation. In areas we plan to replant for fall we will pull up grass, weeds and clean up debris. The south is notorious for bugs so eliminating hiding places and breeding grounds is really important for the future health of our crops. We will also check the connections on drip irrigation lines to make sure everything in functioning correctly.
As a general rule the fall garden is not as large due to a smaller number of crops that enjoy cooler temperatures. Because of this, the larger fields where we planted peas, beans, tomatoes and corn this year will lay fallow till after the first of the year. We will add compost over the next few months and organic material (egg shells, coffee grounds, leaf matter), turning it in periodically to improve the soil quality and replenish nutrients that were used up by this year’s crops.
In an effort to increase productivity we are adding a new raised bed to the mix this autumn. The plans are to grow several types of lettuce – leaf and loose head – spinach, carrots, radish, cabbage, sugar snap peas, garlic (will be planted for next year’s harvest) and green onions. The smaller crops will go in the raised beds and the cabbage we will plant in the larger field on drip irrigation in the area where we grew cucumbers and squash this summer. The plan is to plant a rotation of lettuce, chard and spinach in the newest bed. Carrots and radish in the current split bed. Sugar snap peas, green onion and garlic in the large raised bed. We have had requests for turnips as well but are still considering a location for that possibility. A two to three week rotation has been recommended. We hope by planting with this method it will prolong our production allowing us to harvest up until the first hard frost. Stay tuned for more information on upcoming crops and the installation of the new bed.
McTier Family Farm…. Here we grow again!