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Raleigh Fall Vegetable Gardening begins in the Summer
Hey friends! While it’s blazing hot outside, it is time to be planning and planting your fall garden. We are in USDA plant hardiness zone 7b and have a relatively long growing season: April 9 through October 27. These dates are our average last and first frost dates, meaning half the time the first frost of Fall will start up to two weeks before October 27, and half the time it will start up to two weeks after October 27.…
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Before the Last Frost (2 Weeks)
We have only two more weeks before the statistical last frost date! In previous years I had put out tomato plants by this time and was desperately attempting to protect them from frost by either covering them or digging them back up. I didn’t make that mistake this year, thankfully as we are in a spell of night temps below freezing. There was ice in the bird fountain this morning. Instead of putting out spring and summer veggies, I’ve tried…
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Before the Last Frost (3 weeks)
We finally got our spring weather back after a cold week, and I went overboard digging in the yard. I’ve found that in our fenced vegetable garden, there just isn’t enough room to grow melons. I’ve noticed that the neighbors who successfully have grown them have long vines that trail out. For several summers, my vines have not grown long and the leaves have been dwarfed. I’m hoping this new sunny patch will do well. I went ahead and planted…
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Before the Last Frost (4 weeks)
There are 4 weeks left before our statistical last frost here in Raleigh, NC, which is zone 7b. I have trays of tomato and pepper sprouts that could use some liquid fertilizer. In another week they may need larger pots. Looking ahead at the weather forecast, there are still plenty of chilly nights so I’m not risking transplanting sprouts outside yet. It feels like winter has returned in Raleigh, so I was lucky to have that warm week to get…
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Before the Last Frost (5 Weeks)
We are now five weeks ahead of the statistical last killing frost of the season, and looking ahead on my weather app, we aren’t out of the woods on cold evenings. Last week I shared about the importance of supporting pollinators. One way I do this is to plant flowering perennials. This week I’m writing about finding perennials on a budget. Garden Steals If you are a seasoned gardener, you probably already know which nurseries have the best discount tables…
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Before the Last Frost (6 Weeks)
There are now six weeks until the statistical last frost of the season, but looking at the weather this week, you’d think we were solidly into spring. This week we remember our pollinators. In our yard, there is a patch of clover that the bees love. Earlier this week I just seeded more dutch clover, and back in the fall I planted red clover in the vegetable beds. I’m considering letting those go to flowers rather than turning over the…
