The weather will direct your efforts in the vegetable garden in early autumn–September. Frost may strike even the mildest regions in early autumn. Know the average first frost date for your area. This date will allow you to plan your garden activities; you may have plenty of days to get new crops in or you […] More
Vegetable crops will begin to take longer to ripen in September. Give melons, limas, and tomatoes more time to ripen naturally. Eggplants are ready for harvest when they are shiny. Beans, cucumbers, melons, zucchini, and summer squash will not ripen or mature once they are picked. They will keep for a week or two in […] More
Avocados have a rich buttery textured flesh with a slightly nutty flavor and can be eaten as a vegetable or a fruit. Avocadoes are usually eaten raw. They do not cook well. Favorite avocado recipe Avocados With Seafood Avocado flavor partners Avocados pair well with chiles, cilantro, crabmeat, grapefruit, lime, shrimp, tomato, tropical fruits, turn, […] More
Raspberries are the most intensely flavored and delicate of berries. The peak season for red raspberries in the Northern Hemisphere is June through September; for the golden or yellow raspberry June through October, and for the black raspberry during July. To best experience the luscious raspberry—many consider it a finer fruit than the strawberry–be sure […] More
What would you think of a creamy, custard-like fruit that tastes like a combination of banana, mango, pineapple, melon, and berries? The pawpaw—which is a native North American tree fruit—is just such a fruit. Sounds tropical, but the pawpaw is a temperate—meaning not tropical—tree that is native to the Mississippi Valley, a swath of the […] More
Apriums are juicy, sweet eating out of hand. An aprium is a hybrid fruit—¾ apricot and ¼ plum. The aprium is bright orange on the outside with just a hint of skin fuzz. Its bright orange flesh is dense and surrounds a stone similar to an apricot’s. The aprium is about the size of a […] More
The prickly pear is a cactus fruit that is actually a berry. The pulp of the prickly pear is sweet and moist with an aroma and flavor similar to a combination of the tastiest tropical and subtropical fruits, strawberry, watermelon, honeydew melon, fig, and banana. The salmon or pink to magenta-colored flesh of the prickly […] More
Citrus—oranges, lemons, limes, grapefruits, and kumquats—thrive outdoors where summers are warm and winters are mild. But citrus is not only for warm climates. Citrus fruits can be grown in cool regions in pots or planters that can sit outdoors in warm weather and be moved indoors in cool weather. Citrus fruits take months to ripen—six […] More
Pears are excellent backyard trees. They produce a fruit sweeter and juicier than most apples; a fruit that easily ripens off the tree. After careful selection and early training, pear trees will require generally less upkeep than other fruiting trees. They live longer than most apple trees and they require less pruning and thinning. Pears […] More
Many vegetables can be grown in winter and harvested in winter or early spring. Some vegetables take most of a year to mature; they are planted in spring and harvested in winter. Other vegetables can be sown in midsummer or early autumn for autumn and winter harvest. Vegetables for winter harvest include leeks, salad leaves, […] More
Leafy greens, root vegetables, and members of the cabbage family are good fall harvest crops. These crops can be planted in mid- to late-summer for fall harvest. Fall harvest crops are generally cool-weather crops, the same ones commonly planted in late winter or early spring for late spring or early summer harvest. Where autumn weather […] More
Cool-season vegetables are for planting and growing in late winter, early spring, or in late summer, autumn, and early winter. These crops do best in temperatures between about 40°F and about 70°F (4-21°C). Many can withstand temperatures colder, but few can thrive in temperatures warmer. Make sure that cool-season crops planted in spring have enough […] More
Stephen Albert