FERTILE GARDENS BEGIN WINDING DOWN FOR FALL.Byline: JANE GATES Gardening It's almost time to harvest because all but the late-crop fruit trees have delivered their bounty bounty, payment made by a government bounty, amount paid by a government for the achievement of certain economic or other goals. It often takes the form of a premium paid for the increased production or export of certain goods. . Squashes, including pumpkins, will be ready to harvest once the vines turn brown. In some locations, you can leave them on the vines longer, but if you are near uncultivated areas, the rodents are likely to help themselves if you leave them out for long. Keep summer squashes cropped and watch out for that one that will grow to the size of a baseball bat, depleting the plant's energy. If one gets by, try a recipe for stuffed squash because the skin will be too tough and the seeds too big to make for good eating just about any other way. Pick melons, beans, tomatoes, eggplant eggplant, name for Solanum melongena, a large-leaved woody perennial shrub (often grown as an annual herb) of the family Solanaceae (nightshade family), and also cultivated for its ovoid fruit. and peppers as soon as they are ripe. As the summer vegetables are picked, this season's flowers will be ending in a flourish. They will be trying to set seed before the weather turns cool. If you want to keep some seed, let the capsules swell to full size and dry out before harvesting. Otherwise, keep flowers deadheaded. Perennials that do not put too much effort into producing seed will grow stronger roots for next year's growth. Annuals will keep flowering, trying to create those seeds. Feel free to bring cut flowers flowers cut from the stalk, as for making a bouquet. See also: Flower into the house. Roses are best recut under running water; it will keep the heads from nodding off. Peruvian Lilies Noun 1. Peruvian lily - an Andean herb having umbels of showy pinkish-purple lily-like flowers Alstroemeria pelegrina, lily of the Incas genus Alstroemeria - genus of showy South American herbs with leafy stems; sometimes placed in family Alstroemeriaceae or (alstromeria) should never be cut. Pull off the stems at the base with a short jerk. Most salvias, daisies and annuals are fine being cut at the base of the stems. Many ornamental grasses Ornamental Grasses are grasses grown as ornamental plants. They have become increasingly popular in gardens in recent years. Along with true grasses (family Poaceae), the genus Carex (sedges) are often included in this classification. are coming into bloom now. They send up sprays of feathery feath·er·y adj. 1. Covered with or consisting of feathers. 2. Resembling or suggestive of a feather, as in form or lightness. feath plumes on which seeds are set. Cut the stems as low as possible for dried flower arrangements and short-lived cat toys. Or leave them on the plants all winter so they can provide that winter look often missing in Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, . Even though the weather may still send us heat, you can start backing off from your watering schedule. Evenings are getting cooler and the plants are aware of the change of season because of the shortened days. In fact, some of the trees are already starting to turn autumn colors in preparation for their winter snooze. In this part of the world, there are many plants that actually come out of dormancy for the winter. California natives and some of their Australian brethren grow slowly during hot, dry seasons and rev up Verb 1. rev up - speed up; "let's rev up production" step up increase - make bigger or more; "The boss finally increased her salary"; "The university increased the number of students it admitted" 2. during the winter rains. Autumn will be providing us an opportunity for more planting. We can already start cool-season annual plantings and vegetables. Check in at your local nursery and home store to see what cool-season plants are coming in to plant. |
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