Plant your peonies!!!

It never occurred to me that folks might think they can store these over winter in the basement until last night when someone planned to do just that. They need to be planted in the ground this fall yet. ASAP please. They could be held packed in moist media in a fridge till spring, but that's not really practical. You can still dig and divide your own, but why, when you can just come and by them from me?

Hard Frost on the way

Normally we get a light frost first, and then on average, there is 14 days until the next frost which is usually hard. So normally, it would be worth it to cover your raspberries, tomatoes etc. for that first frost, and have 2 more weeks. Even before it has frosted, you should notice a decline in your plants. Days are shorter, so less sun, sun strength is less, and cooler temps all lead to the plant decline and then the frost brings death. So sad. By this time most of us are gettin sick of it anyway! It looks like this weekend is it, so pick whatever you can. Most green tomatoes that are close to full size will ripen in the house, so pick 'em. Pick all the squashes including pumpkins. Frost on the pumpkin is NOT good. That portion has been froze and will start to rot. Get all the squashes at least in the garage. If it gets really frosty cold in the garden, all the blankets you can toss, still won't keep veggies from freezing. Root and tuber crops like potatoes, beets, turnips and carrots should be okay yet. But.....any part of the top of the carrot can freeze as well. If you can't get them dug, cover with a thick layer of straw or leaves for the weekend and dig asap. Brussel sprouts, peas and broccoli are a few of the cool season crops that can take some frost.
At least the rain has stopped for a few days I hope. Need to get my last squash out too!

Rain anyone?

Could we have had some of this in June, July or even August? So it seems we are getting a seasons worth of rain in one week. This is good however for all of the trees and shrubs that are going into winter soon, as it has been a dry year for plants. We still need to get our peonies planted back in the ground if it ever dries out enough for that. Had some family and friends over last night to 'can' tomatoes, did over 60 quarts. Fun!