Last Harvest of 2010

My last harvest this year.  Our nights are getting chillier and days getting shorter.  So long summertime, I'll see you again next year.  With a heavy heart I pulled up all of my tomato, zucchini and cucumber plants.  It was hard picking the tomatoes before they have a chance to ripen, but I wanted to experiment with a winter crop this year.  Most of my plants were getting moldy as well, it's just time for a clean up.  Now I just have to figure out what to do with all this tomato!  I pickled some of the green ones and gave some away.  I still have 2 full bags in the fridge.
The summer has been wonderful, besides for a few supplemental veggies we haven't had to buy produce since late June.  We're not huge salad eater mind you, we still have to buy fruit.  I wish I had enough land for an orchard (and some llamas, goats & chickens)!  LOL


I cleared the beds, tilled the soil and added some some bone meal and fertilizer to the mix.  Not too much just enough to replenish the soil after a summer's worth of growth.  I've never overwintered plants before and I'm not sure if I'm starting too late in the year.  We still have a few warm days left, I hope this is enough to germinate the seeds I've planted.  I'll need to make some kind of frost protection, maybe plastic sheets over the hoops?

I spaced out my chard and onion in the small bed, they were being crowded by my tomatoes during the summer. Hopefully they'll survive the transplant and last me a few more months.  I've heard that chard is a hardy plant and do well in cool/cold weather.


All of the local nurseries and garden centers have cleared out their stock of edibles.  Besides for herbs like rosemary and sage I couldn't find much so I had to resort to seeds.  I think next year I'll start some seedlings in September for my winter crop.  I chose broccoli and cabbage, they're hardy plants. 


While I was at it I bought some tulip and allium bulbs too.  They give me something to look forward to come springtime.