Fall Gardening Tips
by Diane Heeney - 4dacres@byelectric.com

Fall gardening can be a just as rewarding as spring planting time.  The temperatures are cooler, and the insects have passed their life cycle times of reproduction and destruction.  Short growing season crops such as lettuce and radishes can give you some great late season salads.  Check your seed packets and sow in late summer as long as maturation times are such that you can avoid frost.

Pumpkins and squash keep better when they've been left on the vine to cure.  Garlic can be pulled when the tops start to dry down.  Dry them in an airy place, and store where it's dry, dark and cool.

If heavy frost threatens, you can pick your tomatoes while still green.  They can be kept in single layers on newspaper in shallow boxes in the basement.  Check them about once a week.  Don't pick blemished or very small ones.  The higher the temperature they are stored at, the faster they will ripen.  However, avoid storing below 55 degrees.

Frost doesn't hurt Brussels sprouts, in fact it can improve their flavor.  When winter halts their growth, you can pull and hang in the garage.  They will continue to mature for several more weeks.  You can also dig, repot and place them in your basement.  They will grow for some time.

Sunflowers have a long growing period. When the birds begin to feed on the outer edge of mature seeds, cut off heads and finish curing in the garage or attic.  Of course, if you intended the seeds for birdfeed, just leave them in the garden to cure.  I usually cut them off to save for winter feeding.  I leave the entire head intact, and wire it to feeders close the house.

You can also make a wreath from a mature sunflower head.  Cut a round hole in the center, and embellish with dried flowers, small gourds, miniature corn, raffia, etc.  It makes a very stylish country wreath that I've seen in country catalogues selling for thirty to fifty dollars.

Fall is also the time for making pinecone and nut wreaths.  I highly recommend using both a tacky white glue, as well as hot glue to hold your cones or nuts. The hot glue holds instantly, but the white glue holds much better for the long term. Note also that pine cones close up when wet.  We learned this the hard way when our daughter's pinecone wreath won a ribbon at the fair.  I thought it should be spritzed off with water when we brought it home to rid it of dust.  The cones closed up and the blue ribbon effect went away instantly.  It did dry out, but was never quite the same. We did get a picture before the unfortunate sink incident.