The Gardens on Spring Creek

  What’s Blooming:  Preserving the Harvest by Selena Kunze, Horticulturist, Gardens on Spring Creek           With the first dip of nighttime temperatures in late summer, vegetable gardeners start wondering when the “big harvest” will happen. Tender crops (tomatoes, peppers, squash, cucumbers) cannot survive frosts (32-36 degrees) without protection. Root vegetables (potatoes, carrots, beets) and cold crops (kale, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower) can handle frosts, and some even become sweeter after a frost or two. So, when should you harvest?  If a short-lived frost will be followed by a couple weeks or more of nighttime temperatures in at least the 50’s, you can cover tender crops with old bed sheets, floating row cover or newspaper for a night or two. If nighttime temperatures are forecast to remain in the 40’s or lower, it is generally a good time to harvest tender crops because they won’t be growing or producing much in temperatures that low. Most frost-tolerant