We're at the tail-end of the summer season, and you may be wondering what to do with your garden fruits and vegetables with the different types of weather we've been having lately.
Our Farm Greenhouses manager Shea Doherty has some tips.
"With the colder nights we've been getting, it's been forcing the fruit to start ripening," explains Doherty. "However, with the warm days, the tomato plants are still trying to produce blossoms. So, this time of year, what I would do is literally clip the first six inches off of the end of your tomatoes, just to force it to start setting that fruit and sizing up the smaller green tomatoes on your tomato plant."
He notes any sightings of blight -- little yellow spots all over the leaves, that will turn yellow and then brown -- you can pick the fruit before that situation arises. You wash it with baking soda and water, then put it on the window sill to see it ripen, even though the fruit is still that light lemon/green colour.
He says you should ensure you pull your plants out as the season continues. You should harvest them before frost hits, but if not, pull out any tomato plants and place them somewhere where they will completely dry out. Doherty notes this will ensure any spores from fungus or blights are not harboured by the plants that they have come into contact with.
"All of the vegetable crops are now starting to get harvested," he continues. "All of your peas and beans will be wrapping up here now. So, the only other ones that you're going to have to be worried about this time of year is your corn that's going to be finishing. As soon as you take all of the cobs off, chop it down. If you have a shredder or a knife, shred it back into the soil because there's lots of nitrogen in the stalk. If you get it in while the green is still in there, you are adding lots of nitrogen into the soil."
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