It’s hard to believe the Fall Equinox is a little more than two weeks away on Thursday, September 22nd. Where has summer gone?
Notice it’s getting dark earlier every night? On July 5th, just two months ago, sunrise was at 5:54 a.m., and sunset was at 8:35 p.m. Now sunrise is at 6:43 a.m. and sunset at 7:33 p.m., almost two hours less of daylight! By November 5th, sunrise will be at 7:39 a.m. and sunset at 6:08 p.m.! I already miss long summer days!
Your Fall Garden
I’ve already got broccoli, sugar snap peas, spinach, and kale planted, and I will be tucking in some purple pansies in between the caladiums in the front flower bed. I’ll pull up the caladiums just before the first frost (around the third week in October here on average). The pansies will give me gorgeous color until I pull them up in spring—to plant my caladiums again.
When onion and garlic sets get here in a couple of weeks, I’ll grab some to plant around the outside edge of my fall veggie garden—they’ll help keep deer and rabbits from helping themselves to my veggies, and I get to enjoy fresh onions and garlic in spring!
Take Care of Garden Tools
This is a good time to think about cleaning any garden tools—an important job if you want your tools to last their longest. Use a stiff brush or one with metal bristles—or even steel wool—and scrub off every speck of dirt. Dirt can absorb moisture from the air and cause rust.
Then take fine sandpaper and sand any areas beginning to rust and give the wooden handles a light coat of flaxseed oil. And do all this sitting in a chair on your deck or patio, hopefully enjoying some slightly cooler air.
Get Your Garden Tools Sharpened on September 17th
Bring your pruners in to our Farmers Market (every Thursday from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.) because they do a great job sharpening anything that needs sharpening (kitchen knives, scissors, pruners, etc.). Next time you pull out the pruners, they’ll be ready to go. If you can’t get here on Thursdays, he’ll also be here on Saturday, September 17th for our annual Fall Gardener’s Fair.