October Planting List for Zone 9b

Here it is October, and with it, a major shift in the garden. Even though we still have very warm days (mid-80's for much of the month), the nights are in the 50's and we can feel the change of seasons. Acorns are dropping from the oaks. All the deciduous trees are starting to shut down photosynthesis and halt chlorophyll production; allowing the hidden pigments in the leaves to shine red and gold before abscission. It's time to change your irrigation schedule, and drop it down some, since the plants aren't transpiring as much for as long. And as for planting, here is your to-do list for October.

At Poppy Corners, we've picked the last of the cucumbers and removed the vines, replacing them with braising greens and spinach. We've dug the volunteer potatoes, yielding about 5 pounds (not bad for something we didn't even plan on having!). We'll have our last basil pesto tomorrow night. Some of the tomato are clearly finished fruiting and are being removed to the compost pile. Others have fruit that is ripening fast, and will stay in the ground another week. The pepper plants still have a lot of fruit on them, and I am loathe to remove them just yet. So next weekend will see us removing the main bulk of the summer garden and digging out tomato stakes. Then it will be time to get garlic and shallots in the ground, as well as our main winter crop of winter wheat and clover.

And since I didn't have any pumpkins ripen here, I guess a trip to a pumpkin patch is in order! That should be fun.

Now! Now's the time!

I was just over at the neighborhood pool, scrubbing the tiles (my yearly work-duty), when a neighbor swimming laps stopped to take a breath, and asked how my garden was doing. After hearing about what's ripe now, the kinds of things I'm cooking, and our winter plans for the garden, she signed wistfully and said, "I'd like to grow a few plants."

still a lot of green tomatoes on the vines

I nodded vigorously. "Now's the time!"

"Really?" she asked, astounded.

Yes indeed! Here in Northern California, fall is the perfect time to get going on your garden. The rain is a-comin'! Ok, I agree, we still have our driest month ahead of us, maybe even two, but moisture is on its way. With shorter days, and slightly cooler temperatures, we can get some things in the ground now. Or, we can begin the soil-building process, which will chug along all winter, and be ready for planting in the spring.

still plenty of basil to harvest

Perhaps you've been thinking about how nice it would be to dine on fresh tomatoes next July. Maybe you've been eyeing a 4x4 patch in the corner of your yard, and musing about converting it into a tiny food plot. Or perhaps you've been thinking that the edges of your yard could use more color, more flowers for both you and the bees. Great! Now's the time to make those dreams a reality.

Kohlrabi, almost big enough to harvest. Started from seed July 11, transplanted the end of July, potted up again August 19, this is taking longer than the stated 65 days to harvest. No worries.

To prepare an area for spring 2018 planting, nothing fancy needs to be done. Clear out any large weeds, or if it's grass, mow it short, then place cardboard over the area. Make sure you remove any tape or labels from the cardboard first. Any kind of plain brown box will do. Or you could use several thicknesses of newspaper, or those paper bags from the grocery store, or burlap. The goal is to cover the area to prevent light from getting in. Then, on top of that layer, spread an inch of compost. You could also used bagged potting soil. You could use a layer of leaves or grass. You could use horse or chicken manure. Just get some good organic matter in there. Then cover that with a layer of wood chips. You could buy mulch, but you could also find a tree company working in your neighborhood and get a wheelbarrowfull of chips. You could use sawdust. You could use pine needles. You could use pet bedding from the feed store. You just want to protect the layer of organic matter in the middle, so that it doesn't wash away, or splash up when it rains. 

Then, you just leave it all winter. Those materials will smother anything trying to come up underneath; meanwhile the worms and sow bugs and nematodes and other little creatures will start to eat the cardboard and organic matter. Fungi (the good kind!) will begin to grow and start to process the minerals in the dirt and make connections. Everything will start to decompose. In spring, you can pull back the top layer of mulch and plant right into to what's underneath. No fertilizer needed (as long as you plant into the dirt, not the mulch). 

a honeybee in the Cuphea

Maybe you'd like more native plants and flowers? This is a great time to start them. Go ahead and plant, according to the nursery instructions (some natives don't like rich soil, so make sure you are aware of that) - rough up the root ball really well, backfill with your native soil, cover with a layer of compost and mulch, and water well. Baby it a little through the next two months, then let it fly once the rains come - no more help from you is needed.

You can also sow native wildflower seeds right now - poppies, lupines, tidy tips, Chinese houses, goldfields, nemophila, all the lovely spring plants - and anytime in the next few months. Just mix them up in a bucket of dirt, whatever you have around, potting soil or compost, and then broadcast them in a place with no mulch. Rake them in lightly and then let the winter rains get them going. I tend to sow them several times, except in the coldest months.

Sungold cherry tomatoes, still producing even though the plant itself is looking pretty spent

If you already have a bed lying empty, or a few large pots, and you're really feeling motivated, you could plant garlic. It couldn't be easier - just plant each clove a couple of inches apart in compost-amended soil. After they start to sprout, mulch around them with whatever you've got, and then leave them alone until late May or early June. Homegrown garlic tastes SO MUCH BETTER than store-bought. You really will never go back once you've tried it.

a volunteer pumpkin

All of this, I told my lap-swimming neighbor, along with: no more sighing wistfully at my descriptions of a tomato lunch! You can have your own next year, with just a little effort right now. It doesn't need to be a big production - it's really quite easy.

 So - off  you go - get started!!!

How to Buy Eggs

I haven't bought eggs in years - our six chickens provide plenty for our morning scrambles and afternoon bakings, with enough left over (at certain times of year) to give away as gifts. Our eggs are always so fresh that the whites are firm and high; and the yolks are a gorgeous saffron-yellow-orange. The yolk color is because our hens eat lots of greens and garden scraps. Now that we've become accustomed to having our own superior eggs, store-bought will never be good enough again.

cracking eggs for a custard

But, what if you don't have your own chickens? What if you don't have a farmer nearby from whom to buy your eggs? What do you do when confronted with a refrigerator case full of cartons with different labels? You're a conscious eater, and believe in humane treatment for farm animals; what do you buy? Cage free? Grain free? Vegetarian?

How about bullsh*t free?

"Um, that's a quarter in the swear jar for you, Elizabeth," says the offended Scrappy.

There's a new video out by Vital Farms, part of their ad campaign, which is, frankly, hilarious. Especially the part with the grandma baking for her grandson. It's really worth a watch. I saw it as part of a blog from Modern Farmer magazine, which is a very informative read. It explains why pasture-raised-labeled eggs are best, but still not clear enough to the consumer. You can read that article and watch the video HERE. 

Goose the Golden Sexlink, Molly the Rhode Island Red, Hermione the Plymouth Barred Rock, and in the back, Luna the Easter Egger, our only blue-egg-layer. (Scrappy the Golden Sexlink and Ginny the Rhode Island Red not pictured.)

Pasture raised eggs are not cheap; around here they go for nearly $10 per dozen. This is a fair price when you consider the amount of land needed to graze them, and the infrastructure needed to keep them safe (electrified fences, mobile coops, etc). You're paying for a superior end product, but you're also paying for humane treatment of the chickens. They get to hunt for bugs, hop up in the air, flap their wings, take dust baths, and chase each other around. They basically get to live the life a chicken should live. 

Vital Farms is a Texas company, but I believe they are working with many farms in different areas of the country. As you know, I believe local is better. So if you can find a local source for your supply, from a farmer who raises the chickens on pasture, that really would be the best way to vote with your food dollar. However, if that's not a possibility, then this brand would be a good substitute.

Just a few other notes (though the article does a really good job explaining what you should buy): Chickens are not naturally vegetarians, so skip the vegetarian eggs; most chickens do better with a little grain, so skip the grain-free eggs; if the eggs are labeled 'organic' or 'non-gmo,' this means their daily feed is either or both of those things; the label 'cage-free' basically means absolutely nothing. 

Transition

Happy Equinox, everyone. I'm reminded of that old Don Henley song, "The Boys of Summer:"

“Nobody on the road
Nobody on the beach
I feel it in the air
The summer’s out of reach
Empty lake, empty streets
The sun goes down alone...”

The light is different. The air is different. Our nights are downright chilly.

This is the time of year when the flowers of the Asteraceae family really shine. It's hard to get a picture of one without a pollinator of some sort; we've had all kinds of butterflies and skippers, native bees, and hummingbirds, all clamoring for the inflorescences of the daisy family and for their two kinds of flowers - ray and disk. The ray flowers are the ones around the outside (the petals), and the disk flowers are the ones on the inside.

Zinnias, sunflowers, asters, gumplants, cosmos - all in the same family. All a great source of both nectar and pollen for the pollinators.

Fall crops are going strong - leeks, carrots, beets, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels Sprouts, kohlrabi, cabbage - and my first plantings of kale, chard, spinach, and lettuce have gone in.

The beginning of October is always a busy time. Garlic and shallots must be planted, and the tomato plants and stakes removed (a huge project). The chickens will get an enormous compost pile to scratch through, and the garden will reflect the change of seasons.

Of course the Halloween candy is out in the stores and has been since late August. I asked Tom if we could give out seed packets instead of candy this year. He just laughed and asked me to picture some kid's face when I give him a packet of zucchini seeds instead of a Snickers. Point taken.

Our pumpkins never really took off this year, and the ones that did had only male flowers, a certain sign that my soil nutrition was off in the places I planted them. So we'll have to buy our carving pumpkins this year. And there was no room for winter squash, with 49 tomato plants. So in some ways, our garden really isn't going to reflect the change of seasons as much as I'd like.

Meanwhile, we've already had snow in the Sierra. What a strange weather year this has been, for the entire world.

Tomato Topping Results, plus our favorite Salsa recipe

At the end of August, I tried an experiment: I pruned the tops of all my tomato plants. I hoped that would force the tomatoes to ripen the fruit already on the vines, but I wasn't sure it would work. The actual plants looked very forlorn after I finished topping them; I thought maybe I had made a mistake, and that would be the end of the tomato plants.

Well, I'm happy to report, THE EXPERIMENT WORKED. The huge green fruits have been ripening beautifully, and I've been able to preserve more salsa and more pureed tomato sauce for winter. Plus, we've been eating tomatoes every day in some form or another. Frankly, I think this might be the best thing I've ever done and plan to do it the end of every August, to get another big push of fruit. 

Along with cucumbers, herbs, Malabar spinach, and both sweet and hot peppers, the tomatoes have continued to feed us. I miss having corn, watermelon, and cantaloupe, as well as pole beans, so I'm hoping to find a place for those next year. Meanwhile, leeks, shelling peas, broccoli, cauliflower, kohlrabi, cabbage, and Brussels sprouts are growing like mad for our fall garden. Early October will be time to plant garlic and shallots, and sow-in-place kale, chard, spinach, and braising greens to overwinter. Plus we'll be starting our winter wheat experiment.

You can tell I used a lot of orange tomatoes for this particular batch!

We've been through what seems like a million salsa recipes, and this is the one we have decided is our favorite. It's from the Ball Blue Book, I think this particular book is from four years ago (I believe they put out a new one every year). I will copy the original recipe here; I always double it. I've also made some substitution notes and additions, as well as simplified the instructions, because if you're interested in canning, you already know what to do. If you haven't canned before, please contact me for more explicit instructions! Or consult Ball online! 

“Jalapeno Salsa

3 cups chopped tomato (blanched to remove skin and seeds)
3 cups chopped jalapeno peppers (or whatever you have on hand)(remove the seeds if you like)
1 cup chopped onion (I use shallot)
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 T chopped cilantro (I usually use a bit more)
2 teaspoons oregano
1-1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 cup cider vinegar (I usually use half cider vinegar and half lime juice)

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Ladle hot salsa into hot jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Clean jar rims. Center lid on jar and adjust band to finger-tight. Place in canning ‘rig.’

Make sure you have at least an inch of water over the jars, and boil 15 minutes (rolling boil). Turn off heat and let jars sit in water 5 minutes. Then remove from rig and cool.”

If you don't want to can this salsa, you could freeze it in the jars. Just leave more headspace to allow for expansion in the freezer. Once open, store in fridge and use within a month.