by Serah Blackstone-Fredericks
Rain, thunderstorms, lightning and more sun — just like that, it’s warm in Arcata again. The gardeners — myself included — are dealing with a pesky fungus called blight, which has been plaguing Humboldt gardens all summer.
Blight is a fungal disease that both wilts and discolors plants. It’s been the bane of one corner of my garden, where my very healthy cucumbers and delicata squash were affected. There are many ways to treat it, and the only one I was semi-curious about was spraying old milk directly onto the affected plants. I wish I could say that I tried it out and have something to share about its success rate, but alas, I did not find the desire or time to have my yard smell like spoiled milk.
If you’re wondering what’s good to grow now, I recommend sowing things you like to eat. I had an experimental phase where I sowed some new and familiar items, but all in a mindful consideration of what I eat. This mindfulness did backfire this summer in particular, as I found myself with much less available to harvest right now.
This week, the official calendar fall arrived, and with it my tomatoes and lemon cucumbers all ripened at once. I used to garden closely with the cycles of the moon, and although I love that rhythm, I don’t currently have the time as a student to embody the kind of slowness I seek to cultivate in my life.
Although gardening with the moon offers your plants more of an opportunity to grow well, there can be a pressure created in making certain you are getting to certain tasks by certain days. That level of pressure as someone who is not yet retired started to build up a bit more stress than my body could hold.
In terms of this time of year, it is an excellent time to sow garlic, root vegetables like carrots, beets, turnips, radishes and bok choy.
It was an odd year for squash, so next year, I might suggest growing a couple more varieties such as Delicata, Romanesco, and Pattypan — which I forgot to grow. My pumpkin did not ever make it, although it initially looked quite healthy, and will be something to try again for next summer.
Plant garlic now to harvest in the spring. Wait until it cools a bit more for lettuce. This week through Sept. 26 is a good time to plant vining plants and flowers.
I invite you to try a new hobby this season — or return to an old one — and notice the rest it offers you.
If you have questions, feel free to write to me directly at sb625@humboldt.edu. And if you use Instagram, you’ll find a post with a QR code where you can send in your gardening curiosities.
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