Courtesy Stock . XCHNGBy cogitate ahead to season extenders , you could get the most out of your late - season harvest .
As fall approaches , most gardeners begin thinking about what they can do to keep their veggie from being frosted or frozen at the end of the turn season . extend thegardening season into fallcan be a challenge . Even if you are working with cold- or cool - conditions crop , the crop can not survive hard frost or ice for very long . go on to use sometime sheets and blankets or sheets of plastic to protect plants , as you have in past seasons , but consider other time of year - extending chance , as well .
“ If the idea is to have morevegetablesto harvest home , use up and deal with others throughout the vegetable gardening time of year , then we can face at other options in the garden , ” say Richard Hentschel , a horticulturist at the University of Illinois Extension .
He suggests finding microclimates in your farm garden or grand that will host craw later into the season . Every habitation has areas in the landscape where soils are strong , such those that are southern- or western - lining . He says to consider planting one or two crops in those areas as miniskirt - gardens . hear vegetables andherbsthat have colorful foliage and can add together to the visual interest of the landscape , as well as being something that ’s grown to eat .
“ A landscape bed may be just the right place for vine crops taking up so much space or some of the longer - season veg like chard , Indian corn or Brussels sprouts , or repeated crops like pieplant with its large leaves , or asparagus with its fine , fernlike foliation , ” he notes .
gardener can also benefit by considering other growing methods .
“ Some vegetables can take up lots of space , ” Hentschel says . “ gardener could grow vine crops on a verticaltrellis , provide more ground space for sequential plantings of snap beans , for exemplar , allowing a recollective harvest of bonce . If a trellis is not in the photo , grow the outer space - saver varieties that do not use up your entire garden , leaving room for your other vegetables . ”
When it comes time to harvest , one of the most of import path to extend the time of year is to remember to save only the best for foresighted - full term storage .
“ reap and treat your vegetables with care , as every bruise lessens the time you are allowed to store that vegetable , ” he says . “ If storage is not an option , nurseryman can always leave certain root crops justly in the garden , mulch before the ground freezes , so you are capable to go out and drudge them up as you need them during the winter calendar month . ”
Finally , Henstschel reminds gardeners that even though it seems a long way off , natural spring will also offer more opportunity for extending the next gardening season .
“ One style is to start in the beginning in the season … by constitute those veggie that really prefer to grow in cold or cool weather , ” he says . “ [ For example , ] there are more or less 160 to 200 frost - free twenty-four hour period in Illinois , look on what part of the state you live in . That allows you to extend your early - season harvest by planting those early craw like the leafy greens , onion plant , turnip , peas , cabbage , Brassica oleracea italica , potatoes and more . ”
