Anna's September Garden Journal
I can't tell you how excited I am about the arrival of September, the calendar month that marks the start of Spring. The mornings are getting lighter, the afternoons warmer, and the birds are all singing. There is a real change in the season. I love this time of year; everything feels fresh, new, green and lush.
The main focus of the first half of September is on preparing the garden and creating soil as healthy as possible for an abundant growing season. Another key focal point is getting a continual supply of seeds planted.
In my journal this month we focus on:
- Feed the garden
- Warmer weather – don’t be fooled
- What to sow in trays in the glasshouse and directly outside
Just Feed me.
So you have eaten the winter crops and cleared the old to make room for the new. Now is the time to add compost, worm castings, old rotted-down horse manure and seaweed to the existing soil. We want the soil to be as nutrient-dense as possible to feed the plants we will grow this season.
Feed the fruit trees. A layer of compost and seaweed, followed by mulch, is also a good regime for building the soil around your fruit trees and keeping them performing at their best.
Feed the lawn. From now on, I regularly spray my lawn with soluble seaweed fertiliser. That’s all I use. Make sure you spray it a day or two before you mow to allow the nutrients to be fully absorbed.
Protect. Once you have fed the garden, add a layer of mulch to protect it while we wait for the earth to warm and the soil health to build up. It will also help lock in moisture when the drying Spring winds arrive and suppress the weeds, which often get away on us in Spring.
Green crop. Another option is to sow a green crop ( I use a blend of a few mixtures, including Winter Rye, Field Peas, Rye Grass, Crimson Clover and Lupin, Vetch, Tic Bean, Chickpea, Borage, Phacelia and Radish. All good seed suppliers stock various mixes. I have sown this green crop over my raised beds as it is too early to plant where I live. Why? I wanted the soil covered to discourage weeds from appearing in bare ground and to assist with building up healthy soil. I plan to mulch it into my soil before planting my seedlings.
Secret-weapon seaweed. Now is also the perfect time to spray the garden regularly with soluble seaweed extract fertiliser. Filled with delicious nutrients, this is your secret weapon for a great growing season. It’s brilliant for helping plants maximise nutritional uptake and is fabulous as a soil conditioner, promoting microbial activities and boosting soil fertility.
Oh, and maybe don’t wear white. Although liquid seaweed generally washes away, it’s a dirty brown colour and could possibly stain clothes. I use 1 tsp per litre of water and mix it in a little warm water prior to adding the rest of the water, which helps dissolve the fertiliser.
Check your watering systems. I have irrigation in my garden. It was getting dry, but, thankfully, we have had much-needed rain where I live. Before you start watering, this is the perfect time to check that all lines are working, replace any broken nozzles and replace batteries in your auto timer. Whatever type of system you use, make sure you are ready for watering when and where you need it.
What seeds to sow in September
It’s easy to be fooled by a false sense of warm days at this time of year and to plant out the whole Spring garden. But trust me on this. Finding an entire new garden decimated by frost is heartbreaking, so let’s avoid it as much as possible.
I live in a cool mountain climate and am planting my Spring crop seeds in the glasshouse. We will still get some hard frosts and cool temperatures, and super-cold soil doesn’t help with growing edible green goodness.
Unless you live in a warm temperate or subtropical climate, I suggest you sow seeds in trays and keep them in a protected environment for now. A greenhouse, sunroom, or similar, is perfect.
Sow leafy greens such as spinach, coriander, mizuna, rocket and mesclun leaves. Beets, pak choi, kale and fennel. Peas can be sown inside.
Sow seeds or plants with flowers that will attract the bees and help with pollination. I like to plant cosmos, borage, cornflowers, coriander, rosemary, and lavender, as well as Queen Anne's lace, parsley, garlic and chives, thyme, echinacea, and phacelia. Plant broccoli, kale, cabbage, cauliflower, silver beet, spinach and pak choi directly into the ground. Here in Wānaka, growth will still be slow. In colder areas, cover seedlings cloche-style to give them a helping hand.
Enjoy preparing your garden and giving back to the soil. I think it’s a time to enjoy the change of season and to be grateful for what we have grown and for what is to come. It is worth putting love and time into the edible garden to set up well for a plentiful season.
Until next month.
Anna xxx
