Now’s the Time to Put the Vegetable Garden to Bed

Now’s the Time to Put the Vegetable Garden to Bed 

The chill in the morning air over the weekend is a signal it’s time to put the vegetable garden to bed. Fall cleanup is an important step in preparing the garden for the next growing season, because what you don’t accomplish in the garden now, you’ll need to do in the spring, when you’re eager to plant your garden, not clean it up. Garden chores done now, allow you to focus on planting in the spring, knowing that your garden beds are healthy, and your soil is ready.  

Best practices for putting the vegetable garden to bed in the fall include harvesting the last of the tomatoes and vegetables, clearing the garden beds of all plant material and debris, mulching with organic materials, and planting a cover crop. 

Start with a thorough cleaning of your vegetable garden.  Removing plant material after you have harvested is a smart gardening practice. Leaving tomato plants, cucumber vines and other plant debris in your garden after you've finished harvesting will provide hiding places for pests and plant diseases, giving them a head start next spring. Shred or break up pest and disease-free plant material into smaller pieces and put it in your compost pile or incorporate into the garden soil. Diseased plants or plant parts should be disposed of. 

The second step in fall cleanup is to facilitate adding organic material to your garden bed while the soil is warm and workable. Healthy soil is key to your garden and a clean garden bed is the ideal time to amend your soil. Adding organic material now will improve soil structure and increase microbial activity, which leads to stronger root development and improved nutrient uptake in the spring and summer garden.

Spread out the leaves you just cleaned up off the yard, then add three to four inches of organic compost on top of the leaves. This will help maintain the structural integrity of the soil as well as protect the all-important micro-organisms living in your garden soil. Organic material can be in the form of packaged organic compost, peat moss and earthworm castings.  Come spring, the decomposing leaves and compost can be worked directly into the garden soil.   

Step three, protect your garden soil through the winter with a cover crop.  Using a cover crop is a great way to rebuild soil structure and overall soil health, protect and nourish soil microorganisms, suppress weeds, and return organic material and nutrients to the soil in the spring when you turn it over. Hairy vetch, common buckwheat, fava beans and oats are good choices for cover crops.  

Together, cover crops and organic material will build and maintain healthy, microbial-rich soil through the winter, a sure way to improve the yields in your garden next season.  Make fall garden clean up a part of your routine. It will set up your vegetable garden for a great start next spring.