August 17, I put in collards, kale, mustard, turnips, rutabagas, butter crunch lettuce, spinach and beets. All seeds. Most just scattered on top of the ground and the rain beat them in and settled them. I put the beets and spinach in with an Earthway planter. i also rolled the dice on green and yellow wax bush beans, as well as zucchini and yellow squash. I hope for one good crop from the beans and squash and then frost can have them. But I'll harvest as long as I can. Should have time. I need to get cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower seeds started inside to set out by the middle of October. I realize that will be late, but they'll grow all winter here, so it won't be terrible. I usually have collards and kale into March here. I don't like the big heads like they have at the store for new year's. I like the baby leaves and so do the folks at work. I sell a lot of things cheap. Just for seed money. Token of appreciation, I suppose you could say. It's a fun hobby... Obsession... Fine line...

Chris, do you use frost cloth during the colder months? I have found that it can make a big difference in the survival of some lettuces and perhaps it can help you get a crop from your late beans and squash. This is the first year that I am trying to get potatoes to sprout for a fall crop and I expect to have to cover them to get even baby potatoes. I recommend yellow beets if you have not tried them. Their greens are milder and the beet itself is very good with the added advantage that they do not bleed when they are cut.

I have not tried using any floating row cover. I figure I'll get what I get and move on. I've tried yellow beets before, but that year, I had critters that were munching on them. I had some that looked like the classic apple core with bite marks all around it. And not helping matters much, I'm infested with Johnsongrass. i think I'm going to have to quarantine one area next year and just treat it over and over with round-up or something until I get it beat down. I hate round-up, but I think I hate Johnsongrass even more. It's terrible. Plus, i have pigweed and lambs quarters thrown in for good measure. The nice thing is that once frost does hit, all that weed stuff dies and my collards and kale are left unscathed.

One year, somewhere else, I had tall grass in my beans and when frost hit, those in the grass were safe where the ones not in the grass were not. My whole perspective on certain weeds changed right then and there.

Chris, I control weeds by cleaning up the surface of an area and putting down layers of newspaper. After wetting the newspaper well, I add as much mulch or compost as I have available (up to 2-inches) on top. You can transplant through the mulch and paper, but the seeds below generally will not germinate. Hopefully this will discourage the Johnson grass from pushing through, If not, I would use cardboard. The big box stores like Lowe's have large pieces that major appliances come in. Ask at the shipping and receiving dept. Usually Monday mornings are best. If you can spare an area for several months, you could also try solarizing it by placing clear plastic over the area and burying the edges.

I planted carrots and beets first part of the month, all the greens and turnips last week. I planted potatoes again, tried last year for Fall and they worked well. Cilantro, dill, and mustards all did very good. Always my garlics. I' pruned some of my tomato plants the first of this month as well and they should give me a Fall crop as well. It still rocks my world that we can plant a whole third garden in August. Not missing zone 3A AT ALL!

I have 2 plots that are 100x100. Third is probably 80x40 tapering to 60x40 (if that makes sense). Fourth is much smaller, maybe 40x40. I use a tractor to plow/till. I haul horse manure by the dump truck load and I believe that may be where some of the Johnsongrass comes from.

I've tried mulching with leaves in the past and everything just pokes right through. I do have cardboard on the plan for next spring to put around transplants like tomatoes and peppers. I'm collecting already. But I don't think I can go no-till completely. Too much of what I plant is row crops and doesn't make sense to make planting more difficult.

My seeds didn't germinate very well, so I'll be replanting again this week. Nice and dry this week. Good time to do it.

Hello Ralph,
I am planning to seed the beds with coriander, Fenugreek and spinach. maybe some Salad and peas.
I started the green beans and they are thriving. Very few beans though :-(

Don't plant peas now. The plants are cold resistant, but the flowers and peas are not. I actually kept some fall planted Sugar Snap peas over the winter a few years ago, but they were in such bad shape by spring that they never produced enough to be worth while. I have some green beans planted in mid-August that are producing enough for us to have a meal of them a couple of times a month. I also have four or five Algarve pole bean plants that I planted in an area that gets 4 hours of sun a day, and they are still producing a hand full of beans every day or two.

Thanks!! Ralph.
I will delay planting peas for early spring.
I still have to coordinate all the tender plants i procured at the swap. I have no clue where to begin.