Sadly, vegetable gardens don’t last forever. Once a hard frost has killed all your plants, take time to put the garden to bed properly.
Clean up leftover plants
Pull out all the plants you grew this season, so you start with a fresh slate next spring. Healthy plant debris can be chopped up and worked into the soil or tossed into the compost bin. However, watch out for any diseased material or pest-ridden plants and vegetables. Do not leave this material in the garden because disease pathogens living on those plants can cause problems again next year.
Destroy any diseased or pest-ridden material; do not compost.
Large fruit still on the plant that was never picked can either be chopped finely and tilled into the soil or removed.
Do a soil test
Vegetables can take nutrients from the soil; over time, soil may therefore become depleted in some necessary nutrients.
A soil test will reveal whether there are problems with the soil such as deficient nutrient levels or high pH that could limit vegetable growth next year.
Fall is a great time to do a soil test. If you need to add anything to the soil, there will be plenty of time for the soil to adjust and you’ll be ready for next year’s planting.
The Cornell Cooperative Extension of Oneida County and Cornell University can help you with a soil or pH test. For more information, visit our website at cceoneida.com and click on our Home and Garden section.
Work the soil
Doing this now means your vegetable garden bed will be ready to go in the spring. Tilling the soil loosens hard packed areas and exposes any pests that are living in the ground to the harsh winter temperatures and help to kill them.
Work in any garden leftovers, raked up leaves and compost. This will all break down over the winter and you’ll be ready to plant in the spring
Manage weeds
Weed management in the fall involves removing any leftover mature weeds and to control any late season weeds that started to grow in August and September. Weeds that grew to maturity have seeds. Letting those drop now will lead to future weed infestations in the spring.
Some crops will continue to grow a few weeks after a frost. Root crops like carrots, for example, or some leafy greens like kale can continue to grow.
Make sure you remove the unharvested material before the ground freezes. This includes picking up those rotten tomatoes.
Seeds from tomatoes can stay viable during the winter and become weeds themselves.
Hardscaping elements such as tomato cages, trellises and plant tags should be pulled out of the garden. Clean off any plant debris and dirt and store them in a dry location, out of reach of the elements.
Many gardeners spread straw on their vegetable garden beds once everything is cleaned up and ready for winter.
A big benefit of straw is that it suppresses weeds, which can be helpful come spring. Straw can also protect soil from erosion during periods of late fall or early spring rains.
So, whether you grew your vegetables in a large garden or a raised bed, if you take some time now to put your garden to bed for the season, you’ll be ready to plant again in the spring with minimal effort. For more information on vegetable gardening, don’t forget to visit our website at cceoneida.com.
Are you interested in learning more about gardening, while enjoying shared tips, tricks, and camaraderie with other gardeners? Consider training to be an Oneida County Master Gardener Volunteer. For more information call us or visit our website cceoneida.com, phone 315-736-3394, Ext 100. Be sure to like us on Facebook (https://ift.tt/2Yi7RhI) and check out our YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/user/cceoneida) for great gardening talks.
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October 10, 2021 at 08:00PM
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It's time to put the vegetable garden to bed - Rome Sentinel
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