Weedwhacker said:We had our first frost this morning... although it didn't really seem to touch anything in the garden. (A little hard to tell at this point, since the tomatoes are pretty well shot from "blight" or whatever (other than the ones in the hoop house), and the cukes are also done, due to mildew. Beans have been done for a while now, and all the pumpkins and squash were pulled out several days ago. The peppers didn't look like that had been frozen at all, so I did cover them for tonight (which is supposed to be a couple of degrees colder) - since after tonight the weather is supposed to warm up a bit and the lows will mostly be in the low 50s to high 40s.

This is one of very few years that I'm actually ready for the garden to be done for the year... probably because my mind is occupied with plans for building the new greenhouse (actually a larger hoop house, 16 x 20'). First I have to get everything out of the present greenhouse (8x16), and then we're going to try to move it over to a different area so we can use it to store all the "stuff" -- shelves, pots and so on -- until the new one is ready. The project also involves moving large railroad ties around (which we used for the base of the old GH and will also be used for the new one) and leveling them -- a lot of work there, not something I would attempt myself for sure. After that things should happen pretty quickly, but that may or may not be before the weather gets too bad to continue. So, might not get finished until spring, but in that case I'll use the small hoop house for my seedlings, and the new one should easily be done in time to put in my tomato plants (which is actually the main reason for the whole thing). Tomorrow we're going to go buy the lumber that we need, because it's on sale, as well as the PVC pipes which will be used for the top half. And I also need to get my garlic planted tomorrow if at all possible!

Lots of work. lots of work. But it will be so worth it!!

Weedwhacker said:

Sometimes seems like there is no end to it, doesn't it!

Sure does. Yesterday I felt like it was all too much so I simply didn't do much. Last night came up with my plan for today and now will simply do on and do as much as I can. I know it will get done as it always does.

Sooner or later the snow will catch up with us and we can take a break from gardening, Rita!

Last night was the first frost here, got down to 28°F at the airport, so it only got down to 30°F here.
For the first year in I don't know how many years, I wasn't out in the middle of the night pulling plants in to the basement trying to beat the frost, I moved the orchids and tropicals in a couple of weeks ago, and the last few succulents came in over the weekend. And I wasn't out picking tomatoes (pulled most of them last weekend) or peppers (horrible season, there wasn't anything except for faux-lapeno and faux-banero peppers that bore worth a darn) in the cold either.
Woke to frost on the grass and front yard plants. Went through the yard after I got home from work, the begonias vinca and impatiens were pretty much toast. The remaining tomato plants had frosted leaves, and the pepper plants were finally put out of my, er, their misery. So now it's time to plant garlic (did a bulb trade with a coworker, swapped a russian red for elephant garlic, so now I have 3 varieties to plant) and bulbs for the perennial bed.
I picked the first of my fall peas, from the 2 plants that survived being planted in the late summer heat. Has anyone here grown Super Snappy snap peas? They looked more like a classic snow pea to me, they didn't have the thickness of the pod walls that I associate with varieties like Cascadia or Sugar Snap. But the pods were super HUGE at least. And I hope they keep going for a few more weeks. Since none of the fall greens survived the slugs/bugs, they will be the end of my 2016 gardening season.

cybrczch said:Last night was the first frost here, got down to 28°F at the airport, so it only got down to 30°F here.
For the first year in I don't know how many years, I wasn't out in the middle of the night pulling plants in to the basement trying to beat the frost, I moved the orchids and tropicals in a couple of weeks ago, and the last few succulents came in over the weekend. And I wasn't out picking tomatoes (pulled most of them last weekend) or peppers (horrible season, there wasn't anything except for faux-lapeno and faux-banero peppers that bore worth a darn) in the cold either.
Woke to frost on the grass and front yard plants. Went through the yard after I got home from work, the begonias vinca and impatiens were pretty much toast. The remaining tomato plants had frosted leaves, and the pepper plants were finally put out of my, er, their misery. So now it's time to plant garlic (did a bulb trade with a coworker, swapped a russian red for elephant garlic, so now I have 3 varieties to plant) and bulbs for the perennial bed.
I picked the first of my fall peas, from the 2 plants that survived being planted in the late summer heat. Has anyone here grown Super Snappy snap peas? They looked more like a classic snow pea to me, they didn't have the thickness of the pod walls that I associate with varieties like Cascadia or Sugar Snap. But the pods were super HUGE at least. And I hope they keep going for a few more weeks. Since none of the fall greens survived the slugs/bugs, they will be the end of my 2016 gardening season.

You have been busy. Looks like winter is really on the way for you.

I grow Super Sugar Snap and have for many years. I love it as it makes large and sweet pods. They are typical snap peas in shape. Every once in a while there are some flat pods mixed in and always have been as long as I have been growing them. I eat the flat pods too and they taste good also.

I intend to keep growing it. I grew it this spring and also this fall. So that is my experience with Super Sugar Snap.

Weedwhacker said:Sooner or later the snow will catch up with us and we can take a break from gardening, Rita!

We yes but that is not what I am looking forward too.

I hate winter, I especially hate snow!!

LOL -- I'm pretty sure I could live without snow too... but then I'd probably work myself to death in the garden!

Weedwhacker said:LOL -- I'm pretty sure I could live without snow too... but then I'd probably work myself to death in the garden!

Yes, I wonder if I could manage if I had to garden all year round.

Of course pulling out tomato plants again today. Also I moved around tomato cages. In my plan to plant less tomato plants next year ( plan but it hasn't ever actually worked out that way ), anyway I have cages for most of the rows for the back big tomato garden.

This year I just Florida weaved. Works well till I get tired of doing it or until string broke like it did on some of the rows this year.

Nope, moved around cages, set up for less plants. I really want to be at 100 or under. Seems like an almost impossible goal as I tend to want to plant everything. But too much to take care of everything!!

Rita... maybe you should consider cutting back to, like, 50 or so tomato plants?? LOL, no, I know that isn't going to happen anytime soon!

Weedwhacker said:Rita... maybe you should consider cutting back to, like, 50 or so tomato plants?? LOL, no, I know that isn't going to happen anytime soon!

50 plants? What would the entire neighborhood do? They would actually have to grow their own!!

Seriously I know I simply can't do that. It is way to little an amount of tomato plants for me to be happy. And to think I can remember when that was what I grew and considered a lot.

One more box of ripe tomatoes and green peppers to the village Post Office on Monday and the season will be done even if there is no frost in the forecast. The tomato plants are just worn out. Lots of work left putting the garden to bed for the year and then on to the resting stage before the planning stage begins.

PaulF said:One more box of ripe tomatoes and green peppers to the village Post Office on Monday and the season will be done even if there is no frost in the forecast. The tomato plants are just worn out. Lots of work left putting the garden to bed for the year and then on to the resting stage before the planning stage begins.

Yup, there's the thing. After the season of working to harvest everything there is all the work of pulling out and either composting, burning or bagging the veggie plants in order to be set up for winter.

So seems like lots of work no matter what season.

I know last Fall I did lots and lots of prepwork in the veggie garden in order to be really ready to just plant in the spring.

PaulF said:One more box of ripe tomatoes and green peppers to the village Post Office on Monday and the season will be done even if there is no frost in the forecast. The tomato plants are just worn out. Lots of work left putting the garden to bed for the year and then on to the resting stage before the planning stage begins.

My plants were also worn out before the frost happened... and so was I (as far as tomatoes go. And yet... we have bowls full of tomatoes out in the garage yet, so I will make another batch of soup to can, and maybe another batch of tomato juice . I could probably not plant ANY tomatoes next year and still have plenty of tomato products stashed away!

And, I still have to finish up picking the peppers (which I covered to protect from the frost, and do something with at least some of them.

Can you believe this from the garden today?


It's either pick them or feed the squirrels. And, the plants are full of blooms.

Unfortunately, I don't have anything ready to go in yet, so, I'll keep trending them until I do.

Shoring up the hoops and covers, and threatening to put in my DripWorks raised bed irrigation system. Not gonna drop a single seed until the hoops are in place, cuz the squirrels are already burying nuts everywhere.

Linda, what do you do with all your eggplant?

I've been trying to get my greenhouse cleaned out so that we can (hopefully) move it and then erect a bigger hoophouse-type GH in its place, and everything I open seems to have seeds stashed away by some critter. Mouse? chipmunk? who knows... Most of them I recognize but there have been a few that I had no idea where they came from... maybe I should try planting them to see what grows!

We have had 4 nights of frost here already. They were not killing frosts , but just at the 32, 31 degree range. I picked the last of the tomatoes yesterday and made a large kettle of sauce to make a bunch of eggplant Parmesan today from the last of the egg plants. I plan to freeze a bunch for this winter. The peppers still have not been killed, and there are several peppers on the plants yet that should grow as we are supposed to have a warm spell for a week coming up. My jalapeno peppers sure were prolific this year, and boy are they hot! My bell peppers grew to be about 4 feet high, and I sure liked them. I'm going to have to see what name is on the tags so I can get them again. Nice thick walled peppers and quite large too.

Linda, your eggplant harvest is always amazing!!

Tom, Your peppers sure are hardy to stand up to frosts.

It's always kinda sad when the tomato plants are done.

My tomato plants may be done, but we still have large bowls full of the tomatoes out in the garage... not having a lot of luck finding people to give them to, so I decided I'd make another batch of soup to can today. Might be having a lot of "tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwich" suppers this winter! So, that got rid of one bowlful; there's another identical bowl that I think I'll use to make more tomato juice. No idea what I'll do with the rest -- but quite a few still need some time to ripen so I'll have a little time to think about it.

Planted all of my garlic earlier today -- 48 cloves each of 4 different varieties, the same amount I planted last year. I don't really "need" that much, but I always save some out for planting, and of course I use a bunch of it over the course of the year, plus I usually dry some to make garlic powder. And I definitely have no problem giving garlic away if I have too much.

Weedwhacker said:My tomato plants may be done, but we still have large bowls full of the tomatoes out in the garage... not having a lot of luck finding people to give them to, so I decided I'd make another batch of soup to can today. Might be having a lot of "tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwich" suppers this winter! So, that got rid of one bowlful; there's another identical bowl that I think I'll use to make more tomato juice. No idea what I'll do with the rest -- but quite a few still need some time to ripen so I'll have a little time to think about it.

Planted all of my garlic earlier today -- 48 cloves each of 4 different varieties, the same amount I planted last year. I don't really "need" that much, but I always save some out for planting, and of course I use a bunch of it over the course of the year, plus I usually dry some to make garlic powder. And I definitely have no problem giving garlic away if I have too much.

Yup, you have really done well on the tomatoes this season.

Good going on getting the garlic planted.

Me, I am working on my usual project of pulling tomato plants. I was able to pick a bunch more tomatoes today. Not a large harvest but any tomatoes are good to get this late in October.