Flowers and bushes are blooming, herbs are flourishing, butterfly and bees are buzzing around, vegetable gardens are overloaded with this year’s crops…  if you followed my trimming directions, your mums and asters should be rounding out and bushing up. The sunflowers are in their glory!  If you planted the “seeds edible” variety it is time to check them for ripening. Cover flowers with a light fabric such as cheesecloth to protect them from hungry birds. It is harvesttime when the flowers dry out, the backs of the heads turn brown, and the seeds look plump and loose. With sharp scissors or pruners, cut each head off the plant about 6 inches below the flower. To remove the seeds, rub your hand over the seeded area and pull them off the plant. Rinse the seeds and lay them out to dry for several hours or so.
    It is time to harvest the veggies, as well. Remove the lower leaves of brussels sprouts to expose the buds along the stem. Harvest from the bottom up. If you have too many of any one thing, consider canning, freezing, sharing with a friend or neighbor, donating to Community Needs or any of the local food banks.
    When choosing the ripest watermelon to buy or slice, pick the one with the biggest yellow patch, the most dark spots, and webbing. If you are picking them up, the one you want will be the heaviest one, also. These marks and weight are indicators of the sweetest, juiciest watermelon, perfect for tonight’s dinner or this weekend’s picnic.
    Eating outside and having an ant problem?  Put any amount (as little as 1 Tablespoon) of baking soda in a jar and an equal amount of powdered sugar. Put lid on and shake to mix well. Pour 1 to 2 Tablespoons of mixture into lid and set in path of ants. When ants stop coming around, clear out lid, dry and put back on jar. Label for next outside outing and store in a place safe from children or just make a small amount in the first place so you can dump it all when finished (safest for children).
    Over 6000 species of “ladybugs” exist in the world. Named for the Virgin Mary, these beetles were believed to be “sent by heaven to protect the crops from pests.”  Think about whether you need some Ladybugs to take care of the pests in your gardens. It would be much safer for your children, your pets, and yourself than using chemical-laden pesticides.
    Coming soon, the Full Harvest Moon (September 10th this year), is said to provide extra light after sunset for harvesting. While you are picking the last of the vegetables, don’t forget to gather the seeds from the annual and perennial flowers that can be replanted next spring. Some easy ones are marigolds, zinnias, moon flower, sunflowers, castor beans, hyacinth bean vine, and hibiscus. Save different colors and different sizes separately. Keep until spring in paper sacks, cardboard (anything but plastic or Styrofoam) in a cool, dark place where they won’t freeze. Autumnal Equinox occurred on August 22nd. This is considered the Last Harvest, the beginning of fall, when the nights start getting longer and the days start getting shorter. This is what essentially causes the leaves on deciduous trees to turn color.

Hope you are having a great
summer in the garden!