Thanksgiving is good time to harvest most vegetables
T
he Thanksgiving weekend is a great time to work in the vegetable garden. By now most gardens have been affected by a killing frost and many of the vegetables have been harvested. Frost tender plants such as corn, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, etc., should all have been harvested before the frost. Root crops, cabbage, kale, and brussels sprouts can stay in the garden a little longer, but should be harvested by mid-October. The last vegetables to take out of the garden are those vegetables that taste better after a good frost. Parsnips, leeks, turnips, brussels sprouts, and kale have their flavours enhanced by a good frost, as the frost converts the starches into sugar and sweetens them. If you have a well drained soil, leave a few parsnips and leeks in the garden over the winter months and harvest them in the spring. They are hardy enough to withstand the winter and they will taste amazing next spring.
While you are in the garden, draw a diagram or take a picture, so that you know where everything was planted, and this way you wont plant the same vegetable in the same space next year.
Rotating crops will help prevent disease and pests, as well as keep the soil balanced, because different vegetables take out different nutrients from the soil, so by rotating crops the soil will not be depleted of certain nutrients. This is also a good time to take notes of what worked and didn’t work. What vegetables, or varieties grew well, and which ones didn’t. Were there problems with pests and disease and how did you remedy the problems. Perhaps a garden journal would be a good idea.
Many gardens contain small fruit plants such as strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, etc.
If they are healthy, hardy zone 3 plants and planted in a well drained soil, they will withstand the winter without any problem. Strawberry plants can be protected with an extra layer of peat moss placed over them, but that is optional. Another option is to remove the old raspberry canes either in the fall or the following spring. Some gardeners like to wait until spring as the old canes will help support the new canes over the winter months.
Once all the vegetables have been harvested out of the garden, it is time to clean it up. Toss all the vegetable waste into the compost. Only compost healthy plant material, as you don’t want this year’s problems to become next year’s problems. It might seem like a waste of time, because it is the end of the season, but keep up on the weeding. Don’t allow weeds to go into seed as they will germinate next season and give you more weeding. Also remove all those perennial weeds when they are young and easy to pull, rather than allowing them to form a good root system and dealing with them next spring. Fall is a good time to amend the soil by adding compost, or manure, then the garden can be turned. Turning the soil with a spade will expose any seeds or pests to the harsh winter temperatures as well as help feed the hungry birds. Rota-tilling the garden is best left until spring so it doesn’t get too fine.
Wishing everyone a wonderful Thanksgiving and may your dinner table be surrounded with family and friends and filled with lots of home grown produce.