No, tomatoes are not balls...

I don't know what happened in Indiana this week, but I'm suddenly swimming in vegetables. I came home from a three-day trip to find my garden overflowing with tomatoes, beans and onions ready to be picked. (The weeds went crazy too, but that is another story.)

So I set to work, and picked a mixing bowl filled with beans, probably a dozen onions and more Romas than I know what to do with.

And, then, from the corner of my eye, my littlest helper started picking his own tomatoes. And not the ripe ones. Then tossing them around. "Ball!" he announced.

Before I could stop him, we had a half-dozen "balls" decorating my lawn. Ugh. It's an occupational hazzard of gardening. Guess I've got some spaghetti sauce to start up!

Fall gardening - where to get seeds

This month, I've attended a virtual fall gardening class led by Sharon Astyk. I've learned a lot and feel humbled by the amount of information I'm trying to digest.

If you're considering fall gardening, Sharon has posted a resource guide to places to get seeds. As most places I see seem to focus on spring plantings, this is a great resource.

Celebrating a life well lived

Today we are celebrating an amazing woman. My grandmother passed away this weekend at the age of 97. She lived through the trials of the Great Depression, the challeneges of working on a farm and raising seven children, and the joys of seeing not only her grandchildren but her great-great grandchildren. Few of us can say that.

She was a woman of amazing love and amazing faith. She was an avid painted, an avid gardener, and I wish I had inherited half of her talent.

While we celebrate her life today, I hope you don't mind me sharing some memories I had of my childhood visits to Wisconsin and a fabulous recipe for her raspberry dessert, which us cousins clamoured for the recipe for.

So here's the plan

Last week I alluded to the fact that I was actually going to attempt a fall vegetable garden. Well, here's the plan. For now.

As the tomatoes, summer squash and beans die off, I'll start replanting my small beds with new rounds of spinach, carrots, garlic, etc. I realize this is very much a work in progress - I don't think, for instance, that melon transplants or potatoes may make it after all.

I'm heartened to know that I haven't missed my window of opportunity. According to the Purdue University Extension, I'll still have time after my unexpected absence to get some planting for this year. According to its calendar, I have a few more weeks for fall planting - and even into September for radishes. So maybe I can pull this off after all!

Fall gardening? It’s not even summer yet.

Yes, I realize the calendar says late July. Tell that to my garden.

While I’ve been pleasantly surprised by our wet, cool summer – I think the warmest it’s been all month is 85 degrees – it’s not done much for my garden, other than the unauthorized additions. The weeds are thriving.

So when my fall gardening class began a deep discussion of plans for not only fall plantings but also plans for the winter, I was floored. Fall planting? It’s not September (when I drop in the garlic). And winter? Isn’t that five months away?

I started reading a book on four-season gardening, which hit the point home. Yes, you can have your seasons of gardening tasks: planting in the spring, weeding all summer, staring sadly at the remains in the fall. Or you can take a more ongoing approach. It’s more “do” and a little less do-or-die as far as planting and maintenance goes. And it means that you could be working – and reaping the rewards – for weeks and months beyond your neighbors.

’ll admit it’s taken a major shift in attitudes for me. After a decade of working in publications and the media, I’m comfortable in thinking seasons ahead for my day job. And I’ll be the first to confess I typically wrap up Christmas shopping by Labor Day. But planning for cool-season crops before the tomatoes turn red? It feels strange.

Still, I am slowly getting into the groove of thinking fall. I’ve flipped through a few Web sites and ordered a few fall garden catalogs, a few of which I’ve already had to steal back from my 4 year old. I’ve started marking up my garden plan, which I’ll post next week when I feel it’s a little more final.

In the meantime, if you have suggestions of things to start in my garden for fall, I’d love to hear them!