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September 2009 Harvest Totals

October 8th, 2009

September is the month when things start slowing down here in Ohio. We had scattered frost the last week of September, which is a few weeks earlier than usual. The weather has been very cold and very cloudy and dark, which significantly slowed down the harvests from the garden.
colorful_tomatoes
I harvested my onions, which was very disappointing. For some reason onions do not do well in my soil, I don’t know if it’s the acidity or the lack of sunlight in my fairly shady gardens. I’ll be growing the majority of my onions at my mom’s house next year and I’ll experiment with a few new locations here with more sun.
Onions_harvest
I didn’t get around to planting any lettuce in late Aug/early Sept as I wanted, so I don’t have any lettuce from the garden at the moment. I also got my fall cabbage & broccoli started a little too late, that coupled with the early cold weather will mean I will not be harvesting much from my fall garden. I do have spinach, chard and mache in one bed that will be ready for early spring harvests next year.
Chard_seedlings
The longer I garden the better I’ll be at planting things at the right times to ensure better fall harvests. I should have a decent October harvest with all the squash and popcorn and hopefully I’ll be harvesting lettuce and other green towards the end of the month. I was also able to can/freeze/dry a lot of food for this winter not just from my garden but local food from the farmer’s market as well.
canned_goods
In September I was able to harvest:
44 lbs of tomatoes that were canned in chunks for winter sauces & soups
40 lbs of pears from my mom’s tree
43 lbs of pumpkins & squash that will be made into pies and other goodies
5 lbs of small onions that will be used up this winter in all kinds of dishes
4 lbs of green beans that were steamed, drizzled with olive oil and enjoyed
3 lbs of melons
2 lbs of crabapples that were used to thicken my elderberry syrup
2 lbs of peppers, mostly cayenne that were dried to spice up soups & sauces
2 lbs of celery that was used in chicken soup when I was sick and other dishes
.5 lbs of garlic that I found in the garage that was actually harvested in July but somehow got misplaced
Lots and lots of herbs that have been dried and stored for sipping in teas or spicing up dishes
Ripening_tomato
Despite all the setbacks, it was still a satisfying September. I’d rather be harvesting a little from the garden than nothing at all, and I guess I keep track so that I realize at the end of the month that harvesting 142 lbs of food from my garden means that it wasn’t such a bad month after all. Besides, there are still tomatoes that are ripening on the vines and that makes me happy.

What were your September harvests like? Any standout producers?

16 Comments to “September 2009 Harvest Totals”
  1. kristin @ going country on October 8, 2009 at 7:23 am

    My fall planting of radishes grew quite large. But they were the only fall planting that amounted to anything. We just don’t have enough daylight hours to make fall planting very successful. I think maybe I should concentrate more on over-wintering, rather than a late harvest of lettuce, etc.
    .-= kristin @ going country´s last blog ..Big Day Yesterday =-.

    Reply to kristin @ going country's comment

    • Susy on October 8, 2009 at 8:34 am

      Oh yeah, I forgot to plant radishes.

      Reply to Susy's comment

  2. Daphne on October 8, 2009 at 7:38 am

    My biggest producers were my onions, potatoes, cucurbits and raspberries. I did harvest beans, greens, peppers, tomatillos, tomatoes, herbs, broccoli and carrots too, but in much quantity. I had 47lbs of produce from my garden in September. Not nearly as much as you have, but not bad for my space.
    .-= Daphne´s last blog ..Sunflower =-.

    Reply to Daphne's comment

  3. Dave on October 8, 2009 at 8:21 am

    Looks like you had a pretty good harvest to me! Our garden began fading a couple weeks ago. I harvested a few things yesterday while I was cleaning out the garden. The fall garden should produce for us though. We have radishes, beets, lettuce and more beans on the way.
    .-= Dave´s last blog ..Cleaning Up the Vegetable Garden =-.

    Reply to Dave's comment

    • Susy on October 8, 2009 at 8:35 am

      I have some beets planted at my mom’s, and I’ll probably plant some radishes under a row cover and see how they do.

      Reply to Susy's comment

      • Rhonda on October 8, 2009 at 10:31 am

        I’m going to have to remember to plant beets next year. One of my daughters LOVES them.

        to Rhonda's comment

  4. annie avery on October 8, 2009 at 9:35 am

    yeah, my onions look like yours, and i planted them in april!! due to our especially wet spring and early summer, i had very poor luck with my garden this year. it was the first year for this garden, and adjusting to its nuamces will be easier next year.. i’ll say this: i’m looking forward to harvesting a crop of asparagus for the first time since i’ve been putting gardens in. each time i plant them, i have to leave that space.. next year is the charm!!!

    Reply to annie avery's comment

  5. MAYBELLINE on October 8, 2009 at 10:48 am

    EGGPLANT
    Will it every die?!

    Please tell me where you get those small, stout, round canning jars.
    .-= MAYBELLINE´s last blog ..Fall Planting Part IV =-.

    Reply to MAYBELLINE's comment

    • Susy on October 8, 2009 at 10:54 am

      They’re Ball Elite Canning jars, you can buy them at Target, Wal-Mart. I get mine at Lehman’s to support a local business. They’re wide mouth half-pints. I like them for small things that you don’t use a ton of at one time, like pickled jalapeños. I also use them for gifts and fill them with jams/jellies.

      Reply to Susy's comment

      • MAYBELLINE on October 8, 2009 at 10:57 am

        Gracias
        .-= MAYBELLINE´s last blog ..Fall Planting Part IV =-.

        to MAYBELLINE's comment

      • Maureen on October 8, 2009 at 1:38 pm

        Ditto on Maybellines thank-you…those are adorable jars.

        And your photos (as usual) are fabulous…you make the mundane look stunning!
        .-= Maureen´s last blog ..My Favorite color is Orange =-.

        to Maureen's comment

  6. Dan on October 8, 2009 at 10:36 pm

    I know all about the dark weather lately, we haven’t had frost yet but its been rather chilly and low light. Looks like you had a really good sept harvest, 142lbs is pretty impressive.

    On the fall crop front, I started broccoli, leeks & celery June 1st in cell packs. The only thing that is to small still is leeks, definitely start them in the spring next year. All other crops like spinach, kale, lettuce, mache, radish, chicory, tatsoi, bok choi etc I started from Aug 1-15. They seem like pretty good dates as most things are to a nice size now.
    .-= Dan´s last blog ..Melon Heaven on Wordless Wednesday =-.

    Reply to Dan's comment

  7. Beegirl on October 9, 2009 at 9:34 am

    Beautiful pictures. I’ve never had any luck with the onions. Grew a shallot type that did good this year, once my mom quit pulling them out. She gets impatient. If it isn’t producing…out it comes. Loving your harvest totals and those TOMATOES!

    Had enough of the rain yet this week??
    UGH…
    .-= Beegirl´s last blog ..Knit Wit =-.

    Reply to Beegirl's comment

    • Susy on October 9, 2009 at 9:58 am

      I have had enough of these dark rainy days. This time of year I really NEED sun, after a while without it I start to go crazy!

      Reply to Susy's comment

  8. Sue Dawson on October 10, 2009 at 8:17 am

    I am not organized enough to weigh things, but seeing others doing it makes me think about trying to. Our main September crops were peppers and tomatoes. The onions and garlic were already out by then.

    Your tomatoes sure are pretty! I planted a couple heirloom varieties, and they did not get diseased before the others. In fact, this was a good year for the plants, because they were still producing up to the frost and freezing temps we are currently having.

    The food in your pantry looks great, too. I used to can, but for some reason don’t get around to it. I got some peppers and onions chopped and frozen, but didn’t get to the tomatoes like I normally do. I did use the tomatoes in soup, and got some frozen.
    .-= Sue Dawson´s last blog ..A Squirrel, lots of birds, and some Insects =-.

    Reply to Sue Dawson's comment

  9. The Elusive Morel | Chiot's Run on April 26, 2010 at 4:47 am

    […] you disperse the spores when you walk around. The morels paired perfectly with a venison roast and all those tiny onions from my garden (which happen to roast up perfectly when left whole). I roasted the venison and […]

    Reply to The Elusive Morel | Chiot’s Run's comment

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This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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