Fall is the time to bring in the harvest and preserve the fruits of your summer efforts, but did you also know that it is a very important time to amend the soil for next year? In the Willamette valley putting the garden to bed should also include adding lime. Have you ever wondered why your brassicas get attacked by aphids in spring? It is usually caused by a lack of calcium and acidified soil.
Most types of lime take several months to release calcium, so doing it in the fall ensures adequate calcium levels for spring and summer crops. Since it rains so much in the Willamette valley the calcium is often washed out causing acidification of the soil. Most annual veggies and perennial fruit crops like a more neutral soil for the uptake of all other nutrients such as phosphorus and potassium. PH of the soil and calcium levels go hand in hand, calcium is the super highway for all other nutrients both micro and macro.
Lime comes in different forms and it is important to know which one to use to suit your type of garden. Dolomite has higher amounts of magnesium and is best suited to raised beds once every 4 years with the use of either oyster shell flour or ag lime every year in between. If dolomite is used on clay soil every year the calcium gets washed out and the magnesium levels will build up causing the clay soil to shrink up and not hold moisture.
Agricultural lime has trace amounts of magnesium, as does our willamette valley clay soil, which contains enough for plants to uptake the calcium, because you do need magnesium to uptake calcium. Oyster shell flour also contains trace amounts of magnesium. Gypsum is another source of calcium and also sulfur and can be used as a calcium source. It is applied at 20 to 30 lbs per 1000 sq. ft. depending on the site. Gypsum is great for breaking up clay soil making it more water permeable.
Rates of application for lime ranges from 10 lbs per 100 square feet to 10 lbs per 1000 square feet, depending on the type of lime and whether you have been using it every year or not. More is not always better though because too much will alkalise the soil, locking up nutrients. We carry all of these types of lime at the Coast fork feed store.
Cover Crops
Fall is also the time to plant cover crops. Why cover crops? Cover crops as the name refers protects the soil from exposure to the elements which can harm soil microbes and cause erosion in the case of wind and rain. Cover crops are multi-functional not only do they protect soil but can also add nutrients, such as nitrogen, and organic matter. We carry an array of cover crop seeds for all types of gardens. Legumes such as vetch, field peas, fava bell beans and clover will fix nitrogen in soil. Rye grain adds great organic matter. Daikon or field radish helps break up heavy soil. A mix of the three covers all your bases!
Get that Garlic in the Ground!
September and October are the times in the Willamette valley to plant garlic as well. At the Coast fork feed store we are currently carrying organic certified Music and Nootka rose garlic seed varieties, both from a local grower, Country Joy Farm in Dexter, Oregon.
Nootka rose is a Northwest heirloom variety from the San Juan islands in Washington. It has a strong spicy flavor, delicious aroma and real heat! It grows reliably and sizes up nicely. Softneck varieties make lovely braids and are good winter keepers. It is a late season maturity and is generally harvested mid July.
The other variety from Country Joy farm is called Music. Music is a mid season, porcelain, hard neck variety. It has large, easy to peel cloves. The taste is a medium hot, true garlic flavor. For a hardneck variety it has excellent shelf life and will store 9 months up to a year. It is also very cold tolerant.
Did you know that the more purple garlic becomes, the more Allicin it contains. Allicin is the active constituent in garlic that is good for your heart. It is what makes garlic antibacterial, an antioxidant, antispasmodic, anti-asthmatic, immunoregulator, and helps lower blood pressure! The better your soil is, the more purple garlic becomes! If you haven’t tried the Sea Coast compost or wool pellets that we carry at Coast fork feed store, definitely try them as an amendment for your garlic to enhance the allicin in your garlic!
When planting garlic or any other fall bulbs, adding a high phosphorus fertilizer such as rock phosphate, bone meal, or fish bone meal, will yield larger flowers and bigger bulbs.
Aside from the added phosphorus, the best way to get large heads of garlic is to plant them at least a hand’s width apart and keep them well weeded. A light mulch of straw or leaves will help or plant them an inch wider than your hula hoe and run it through as weeds appear. This will create a natural crust mulch on the top of the soil, doing it this way will help prevent mold which can be caused by too heavy of a mulch through winter.
If you do choose to mulch, pull it off in the spring and just keep it weeded until harvest. In about March garlic benefits from a dose of nitrogen from composted manure or fish fertilizer. There is really nothing like cooking with your own garlic!
Happy fall planting!
