Gardens have a ramping up style of calendar. Early on, each new growth thrills the gardener and the harvesting can’t come soon enough after the long Wisconsin winter. Come late summer and fall, it’s a different story. Every other day the broccoli and beans need harvesting, the tomatoes are coming in bucket loads, the potatoes need digging, the herbs need drying and the list continues. It’s thrilling in its own way and challenging to keep up!
One approach to fall harvest and clean up is to combine the jobs with adventure. How many birds do you hear while harvesting the seemingly endless cherry tomatoes? Are sleepy bumblebees waiting to greet you in the morning on your sunflowers? Think of the countless webs of life your garden hosts. Every year I see new insects that I have never noticed.
Gardeners learn and relearn the importance of fall garden clean up. Do try to remove and discard diseased plants. Add a layer of compost or manure to your beds in the fall, if possible. Think how much you have asked of this soil that has nourished you all season long. This is a great time of year to give it some love.
It doesn’t take long to plant garlic cloves 4-6 inches deep and 4-6 inches apart in October and give it a layer of mulch. Think how happy you’ll be in the spring when little points of garlic start to grow. Harvesting those remaining veggies and fall raspberries can be relaxing after a day at work. As a bonus, fall crops get sweeter as the weather cools. This is certainly true for the brassica family such as Brussels sprouts and broccoli.
Do you still have beets? Roast cubed beets and make a quick meal by wrapping the sweet roasted beets in a cream cheese smeared tortilla with caramelized walnuts, greens such as kale or Swiss chard and shredded cheese of your choice. The caramelized walnuts are made quickly in a skillet by heating the nuts with a generous sprinkle of sugar and stirring until the sugar melts and coats the nuts. Keep stirring as the sugars can burn easily.
Be proud of your garden! Think of all you have accomplished this season. It doesn’t need to be perfect. In fact, it shouldn’t be. Gardening is an endless learning adventure.
