For people who want to grow more food with less work. 🌱 This is my weekly newsletter loved by 38,000+ subscribers—here's what one of them had to say: "These are not the regular run-of-the-mill garden-based emails. You actually touch on more unusual tidbits that encourage me to keep growing and learning."
what to plant now for an epic fall garden
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Don't forget to take advantage of your 20% off discount with code BLOOMUSA20 when you shop Peaceful Valley—now through July 8! This week I just sowed another round of seeds in my garden (arugula, fava beans, bush beans, and carrots) and tomorrow I'll be starting a few winter-hardy varieties of lettuce, spinach, and kale indoors to transplant outside in a few weeks. When my garlic crop is harvested in another week or so, I'll be sowing watermelon radish and black Spanish radish in its place. (These two are winter radish types, so they take a little longer to mature and are meant to be harvested in fall.) This is all going in my fall garden, and I know, it sounds kind of weird—to start a fall garden in summer—but now is the best time to do so! Don't wait until it's too late and daylight hours are waning. You probably have a few tired plants left over from spring (looking at you, peas) and there's now (or soon to be) an empty bed after pulling up all your garlic. Instead of leaving that soil bare or sticking it out with plants that are obviously struggling, replace them! There are many things you can direct sow in the garden in July and even August (in fact, an early frost can improve the flavor of commonly spring-grown vegetables by making them sweeter). So take advantage of the cooler weather ahead—
(I recommend these carrot seeds if your weather is especially hot right now; kurodas are heat-resistant and grow well through the end of summer when other varieties tend to become stunted.) I've really been enjoying staying in town this summer—I LOVE summer in Bend, and last weekend a group of us floated a new (to us) section of the Deschutes River that I think is the best float in the area! It was wild, scenic, and the perfect length for kids at just under 3 hours long. The next day, Gemma got a new fishing pole and went back to the same spot with Dad and a couple friends to practice casting. She's hooked! (No pun intended.) Some of our favorite cousins came to Bend for an impromptu visit while driving back home from Vashon Island, where they'd been digging for clams. We feasted on ceviche and sashimi and BBQed late into the night. We spent the day at a 4th of July party yesterday, and left just in time to catch the fireworks over Pilot Butte. We'd originally planned to watch the fireworks from a park, but with it being 10 minutes before showtime, the parking lot was packed so we parked a couple blocks away and ended up having a perfect view with no trees in the way. I've checked a LOT of yard chores off my list these last couple weeks, and it feels so good!
Totally loving summer around here, hope you are too! ☀️ P.S. Midsummer is the ideal time to start your fall garden. This is what I plant every July. P.P.S. Plan your fall garden, log your daily highs and lows, and track what you sowed and when you harvested with my Ultimate Garden Diary. This downloadable and printable mix-and-match garden planner, journal, and recordkeeper helps you stay organized and become a better gardener! (Bonus: no refill pages needed!) |
Garden Betty
For people who want to grow more food with less work. 🌱 This is my weekly newsletter loved by 38,000+ subscribers—here's what one of them had to say: "These are not the regular run-of-the-mill garden-based emails. You actually touch on more unusual tidbits that encourage me to keep growing and learning."