By Laurie Roehl

Our gardening season has come to an end. On Oct. 15, we harvested the last of the peppers and tomatoes in anticipation of a killing frost. The plants were all pulled, beds reconfigured for next year and compost applied. A total of 131 pounds for the week brought our year-end total to 1,790 pounds. 

During the season, we experimented with buckets for watering. The rains early in the year decreased the need for additional watering. We did find that the buckets provided consistent and deep moisture. We grew all heirloom tomatoes that did not provide the amount of produce we were expecting. We had many positive comments on the garden from the visitors at the fair, and many great questions about squash bugs, tomatillos and the square-foot garden. 

The success of the garden is due to the 24 MGs who helped at the Demo Garden this year, including seven interns. The work was easy with so many willing and able to lend a hand. Now it’s time to rest a little and plan for next season.