October Garden Notes

The mornings are crisp and cool. Fall is officially here! The tomatoes don’t taste as vibrant and bright as they did in August. Just like the seasons, the garden is winding down too. If you have not already done so it is time to remove all the summer veggies. Do NOT dig out plants, instead cut at the base where the plants meet the soil. Leaving roots to decompose into the soil. Doing so, adds much needed organic materials for the microorganisms to eat. 

You can plant a winter garden too, but my favorite thing is to plant just a few winter veggies and cover crop the rest of the planting areas. Cover crop is planting plants to cover bare soil rather than for the purpose of harvesting. Cover crops manage soil erosion, soil fertility, water, keep weeds down, add bio-diversity and wildlife to soil. 

In northern California, in our mild bay area climate, I suggest planting cover crop in early November. I buy seeds in bulk of winter rye, hairy vetch, and crimson clover. I mix them in a big giant bucket them heavily into planting areas, just barely mixing them into the soil. Then cover the cover crop lightly with straw mulch. Over winter the plants will grow about 2-3 feet tall and in February or early march you will cut down the cover crop plants. Using a mower or scythe leaving the last 2 inches still in the ground. Then you will cover with mulch again. The roots and plant mater will slowly decompose back into the soil.