What’s Growing on in the Garden: August 2024

We made it to September! I can’t believe summer has flown by so quickly, but then again, it always does. We are getting back into our routines as my son heads back to school this week, and I know our calendar will soon be a flurry of activity. I am looking forward to everything from concerts to competitions and every school activity in between. However, this year is bittersweet as it is his senior year in high school, and I am bracing myself for the emotional roller coaster that is to come. It will be a school year filled with “lasts,” and I know it will be difficult to say goodbye to them all.

As our family prepares for this transition, the farm and seasons are also transitioning. As we begin to say goodbye to summer and hello to fall, I can see the change in the flowers. They, too, are transitioning, and I see that the end of the growing season is near. Though there is still much to do and more blooms to come, I welcome the slower pace that autumn affords and hope to catch my breath and stop and embrace these moments. The weather is starting to cool, and I am enjoying the act of grabbing a sweatshirt before heading out to harvest in the early mornings. Fall is my favorite season, and I find myself longing for long walks on a crisp day with the scent of falling leaves in the air. But before I jump into everything pumpkin spice, let’s look back at the abundance that grew here on the farm in August.

By mid-August, I finally felt caught up from our time away in July and could enjoy being back at the farm. The weather continues to be challenging this season, as high temperatures and a lack of rain are stressing some plants. In August, storms produced a few heavy rainfalls, accumulating up to three inches of rain in one day, but then we would go weeks without a drop of rain. The hot sun and wind have dried the soil, and we have had to run irrigation regularly. We have also dealt with a slew of pests this past month. Whether insects or wildlife, everyone seems determined to dine on our crops. We lost a crop of sunflowers to cucumber beetles and many of our tomatoes and peppers to chipmunks and woodchucks. They laughed at me with full cheeks bursting with fresh produce. But, with each challenge, I learned to pivot, whether by using large organza bags on our sunflowers or bringing some of our pepper plants indoors to finish ripening. Farmers and gardeners must continually learn as they grow!

I harvested many tomatoes and peppers this past month despite the chipmunks stuffing their cheeks and ending our edible growing season. The freezer has been filled to the brim, ready to bring summer flavors to our plates in the dead of winter. Standouts for us this season were farm favorites Sart Roloise, Black Brandywine, and Sungold tomatoes, along with the delicious Little Sweetie series of sweet snacking peppers and Pathfinder serrano peppers. This season, a new pepper variety on the farm was Oranos, and these elongated, sweet orange peppers topped the list for flavor and became an instant favorite. They will definitely be added to the “must grow” list.

August held an abundance of blooms on the farm with a gorgeous cast of both perennials, such as sedum, rudbeckia, helenium, and hydrangeas, and annuals, such as dahlias, sunflowers, zinnias, and celosia.

While our dahlias are still playing catch-up this season, the cooler nights have reinvigorated the plants, and they are finally sending up buds. There are far fewer blooms this season than planned, but I am enjoying each one that I harvest to the fullest. Standouts this season are Jowey Winnie, Isabel, Ivanetti, Robin Hood, Copper Boy, and Kelgai Ann.

It has been a stellar hydrangea season with some of the most beautiful and prolific blooms we’ve ever seen. We grow five hydrangea varieties here on the farm, and they were all stunning this season. Towards the end of August, the blooms began their color transition as evening temperatures cooled. I adore the pink blush these flowers take on this time of year and was thrilled to share them with our Whistling Bee Farm community. Standouts this season included Nikko Blue, Little Lime, Doublicious, and Vanilla Strawberry.

August was sunflower season, and I was delighted by all the varieties we grew. Despite losing an entire crop of my favorite sunnies, White Lite, to cucumber beetles, we had abundant blooms once I placed organza bags on the rest of the buds. I trialed several new varieties of sunflowers this season and was impressed with them all. They will all be going on the “must grow” list. Standouts included Zohar, White Lite, and Peach, Gold Lite, and Red/Lemon Bicolor from the ProCut series.

In preparation for the fall season, I also began harvesting blooms for drying. These dried stems will be used in future holiday projects like our festive dried flower mini pumpkins. Some of our favorite flowers for drying include gomphrena, Sweet Annie, strawflower, and celosia. Our celosia was particularly abundant this season, and I harvested bucketfuls for fresh and dried arrangements. Standouts this season included Flamingo Feather, Ruby Parfait, Rainbow Sherbet Mix, and Green Sylphid.

What a month August was here on the farm, filled with abundance and beauty! I was humbled to grow these blooms and share them with our community.

While the growing season is starting to wind down, there is still much to do and more flowers to share. One of my greatest joys is spreading kindness through our flowers. That’s what’s been growing on in my garden; what is growing on in yours?