Putting the Garden to BedHopefully you have been happily harvesting away, putting up the fruits of your hard labor for the winter, saving seeds for next season, and enjoying some cooler weather as we roll into the fall season. As we get small frosts in early October, be sure to cover up any delicate plants or crops with low frost tolerance overnight. Simply covering them with cloth/reemay/burlap should suffice, doesn’t need to be fancy and we always promote up-cycling items you already have around the house (i.e. an old sheet should work fine!). We don’t recommend plastic as it can trap moisture and freeze the condensation inside, but if that is all you have, it is better than nothing. Another option if you are container gardening, is to pull plants inside or into a greenhouse/cold frame. Additionally, be sure to put all that green to good use! We are big proponents of the chop & drop method. Simply cut back your harvested plants and dig them directly into the soil. Be sure to remove any diseased plants beforehand to prevent propagation of disease or pests for next season, but also try not to overthink it too much. This green matter will decompose and enrich your garden beds for next year. Also be sure to put dead tree leaves to good use by doing the same (or mulching them into your lawn if you have one) instead of wasting all that organic carbon matter by bagging them in plastic (!) and sending it to the landfill. At the very least add them to a compost pile. Doing these small acts to properly put your garden to bed will not only add in nitrogen and nutrients to your soil, it will also act as mulch over the winter months to reduce nutrient run off and erosion over the winter months. Better yet, add in cover cropping to the mix. (scroll down below for more) Corn stalks can also be a quick and dirty mulch option to cover your beds and put those hard to break down stalks to good use. You can also repurpose stalks as a first layer of “bedding” for your winter compost pile, this will allow oxygen to flow through your compost pile and expedite the decomposition process.
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