The August garden in Southern Ontario is full of production, you can feel a satisfaction of knowing you had a part in it. I find that most meals consist primarily of vegetables from the garden and lots of preserving is happening to save as much as possible. Here’s my August garden update.
Planting & Garden Maintenance
I have started some lettuce and herbs which have shorter maturities, we are just over a month from our average first frost date. These plants can easily be protected from frost and tend to thrive in the cooler temperatures we see in the fall. Not much for garden maintenance at this time of year. Weekly I go through and pick any weeds that have popped up and I continue to prune and trellis the tomatoes. Most of my time in the garden at this time of year is spent harvesting.
Harvesting
Many of the same things that were being harvested in July continue to produce into August. New additions this month include sweet corn as well as onions being ready to harvest.
- Kale, cabbage
- Tomatoes & Peppers
- Cucumber, Zucchini
- Herbs
- Sweet Corn
- Carrots & Beets
- Ground Cherries
- Beans
- Onions
Preserving
With the abundance from the garden this month I have focused on trying to preserve any surplus.
- Fermenting – sauerkraut
- Canning – tomatoes, hot peppers, cabbage
- Dehydrating – tomatoes, herbs
If you are looking for some suggestions for saving your tomatoes, check out this post on preserving tomatoes.
Coming Soon
One of the last things in the garden to be harvested will be the potatoes, they are showing signs that they are ready and I just need to find the time. The squash also are looking like it will be ready soon as well.
It’s hard to believe that the end of the gardening season is coming so quickly, our first frost is just around the corner. I hope you enjoyed this August garden update, leave a comment below about what’s happening in your garden this month.
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