Garden Calendar

All photos and videos © Michael Hofferber. All Rights Reserved.


Picking Pumpkin
Oct
26
to Nov 16

Picking Pumpkin

Pumpkins are usually ready to pick 90-120 days after planting, depending on the variety. Signs that your pumpkin is mature and ready for harvest include:

  • The stem has turned brown, woody, or withered.

  • The pumpkin has fully developed its typical deep color for the variety.

  • The rind is hard and cannot be punctured easily with a fingernail.

  • The pumpkin sounds hollow when tapped.

  • The vines begin to die back and lose color.

Always harvest before the first hard frost to prevent rot.

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Red Maple
Oct
23
to Nov 17

Red Maple

Red Maple (acer rubrum) in łatę autumn with classic red leaves. This is a medium-sized tree with red flowers, red fruit, and red-tinged fall color that grows 40-60’ tall, and has a rounded to oval crown.

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Oct
22
to Oct 29

Saffron Blooms

The autumn crocus Saffron (Crocus sativus) has golden-colored pungent stigmas (pollen-receiving structures) that are dried and used as a spice to flavor foods and as a dye to color foods and other products. Saffron has a strong, exotic aroma and bitter taste and is used to color and flavor many Mediterranean and Asian dishes, particularly rice and fish, and English, Scandinavian, and Balkan breads. It is an important ingredient in bouillabaisse.

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Picking Cantaloupe
Oct
1
to Oct 28

Picking Cantaloupe

The cantaloupe is a type of true melon with sweet, aromatic, and usually orange flesh. Native to the Nile River Valley in Egypt, this fruit is also known as muskmelon in the USA and rock melon in Australia.

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Pumpkin Matures
Sep
28
to Oct 16

Pumpkin Matures

Pumpkin is a cultivated winter squash in the genus Cucurbita. The term is most commonly applied to round, orange-colored squash varieties.

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Chiminea Aflame
Sep
25
to Nov 27

Chiminea Aflame

A chiminea is a freestanding, front-loading outdoor fireplace or oven with a bulbous body and a vertical chimney or smoke vent, traditionally made from clay but now available in cast iron, aluminum, and other materials. It is designed to burn wood, charcoal, or, in some modern models, gas, primarily for outdoor heating, cooking, and ambience.

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Asters in Full Bloom
Sep
20
to Oct 18

Asters in Full Bloom

Asters are perennial flowering plants known for their daisy-like, star-shaped blooms in vibrant shades such as white, pink, blue, purple, and red. They typically blossom in late summer and fall, adding color when few other flowers remain in bloom.

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Fair Bianca Rose in Summer
Sep
1
to Sep 24

Fair Bianca Rose in Summer

Rosa Fair Bianca

Fair Bianca is a hybrid shrub rose in the Rosaceae family.

This upright bushy shrub will grow 3-5 feet tall and 3-4 feet wide in full sun in amended well-drained moist soil. Prune in late winter. Protect new growth from spring frosts.

White to white blend flowers are very full with 40 or more petals that open flat and quartered with reflexed edges. They are 2-3 inches wide with a strong myrrh fragrance and bloom in clusters nearly continuously for the season. Semi glossy mid to dark green leaves are on stems with prickles.

Use this shrub in the border, in groups, as a specimen or accent in an English, cottage or cutting garden.

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Three Sisters Maturing
Aug
22
to Sep 12

Three Sisters Maturing

Beans are grown with corn as part of the "Three Sisters" companion planting method: pole beans use the corn stalks as support, fix nitrogen in the soil, and squash plants provide ground cover.

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Apples Ripening
Aug
16
to Sep 13

Apples Ripening

As apples mature, they produce ethylene gas, which acts as the "ripening hormone" and triggers changes in the fruit.

Ripening is marked by a series of changes: Starch in the flesh converts to sugar. The skin changes color: background green fades to yellow or whitish (variety-dependent).The flesh softens and acidity decreases, making apples taste sweeter. Seeds turn brown, indicating maturity.

Apple varieties ripen from late July to October in temperate regions, with some early varieties ripening around late July/early August, and late varieties into October or November.

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Burning Brush with Chiminea
Aug
10
to Aug 17

Burning Brush with Chiminea

A chiminea provides a safe and effective place to burn off dried weeds and grasses. Be sure to place your chiminea on a fireproof or fire-resistant surface such as cement, pavers, bricks, or flagstone. Ensure it's at least 10 feet away from any structures or flammable materials, including fences, trees, and bushes. And never use accelerants like gasoline or lighter fluid to start the fire.

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Corn Tasseling
Aug
8
to Aug 29

Corn Tasseling

Corn tasseling refers to the stage when the corn plant produces its tassel, which is the male part of the plant at the top of the stalk. The tassel contains hundreds to thousands of spikelets, capable of producing the pollen needed for fertilizing the silks on the ears below. The tassel's job is to shed pollen, which is carried by the wind to the silks (female parts) on the ears of the corn. Successful pollination leads to kernel formation and, ultimately, an ear of corn.

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Echinacea Tea
Jul
17
to Sep 25

Echinacea Tea

Echinacea tea delivers a bold, floral flavor with a sharpness reminiscent of pine needles and a subtle sweetness similar to meadowsweet.

It is prized for its potential health-promoting properties, Regular consumption may help boost immune response. Some studies suggest that echinacea can lower the risk of catching the common cold and may shorten recovery time if you do fall ill. The tea may also help reduce inflammation, potentially soothing sore throats and easing symptoms related to colds or the flu.

The aroma and essential oils in echinacea tea are said to positively influence mood by promoting dopamine release and reducing stress

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Lettuce Bolting
Jul
15
to Aug 10

Lettuce Bolting

Bolting in lettuce is usually triggered by warm temperatures and/or water stress. This is a natural process where a lettuce plant flowers and produces seeds rather than putting on new leaves.

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Picking Cucumbers
Jul
12

Picking Cucumbers

Cucumis sativus

This widely cultivated, creeping vine plant in the gourd family (Cucurbitaceae) produces elongated, green-skinned fruits. Botanically, cucumbers are classified as a fruit—specifically, a type of berry called a pepo—because they develop from the flower of the plant and contain seeds.However, they are most often treated and consumed as a vegetable due to their mild, savory flavor and typical use in salads, sandwiches, and pickles.

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Russian Sage
Jul
10
to Oct 22

Russian Sage

Salvia yangii

A flowering herbaceous perennial plant native to the steppes and hills of southwestern and central Asia, Russian sage was not previously a member of the Salvia family, but has become widely known as a sage and ornithologists have included in its family since 2017. This plant grows upright, reaching 0.5–1.2 metres (1+1⁄2–4 feet) tall, with square stems and gray-green leaves that yield a distinctive odor when crushed. Best known for its flowers, flowering season for Russian sage extends from mid-summer to late October, with blue to violet blossoms arranged into showy, branched panicles.

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Orange Coneflower in Bloom
Jul
7
to Aug 25

Orange Coneflower in Bloom

Rudbeckia fulgida

Blooms from midsummer through fall with bold yellow-orange flowers that nearly cover the entire plant, growing from two to four feet high. This plants has deep green foliage and sturdy stem, with good form all season-long. A good nectar source, Orange Coneflower is visited by butterflies and other pollinating insects. Native to the eastern area of the Midwest, it does best in full sun to light shade in a rich soil. The plant prefers consistent moisture, but becomes more drought tolerant once established.

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Squash Blossoms
Jul
1
to Aug 15

Squash Blossoms

Squash at Farmer's Market Online®

Squash blossoms are the edible flowers of squash plants, especially those from the Cucurbita pepo species, which includes zucchini and other common squashes. They are also known as zucchini flowers or courgette flowers The blossoms are delicate, with a mild, slightly sweet flavor reminiscent of young squash, and are prized in many cuisines for their unique texture and taste

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Edith's Darling Blooms
Jun
25
to Aug 27

Edith's Darling Blooms

This bright, English-style shrub rose produces 3" golden blossoms with over 60 petals each. The Edith’s Darling name was inspired by the television series Downton Abbey character, Lady Edith. It embodies the devotion and affection Lady Edith maintained for her beloved daughter Marigold. These ruffled and cupped rose blooms have a fresh, fruity scent.

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Pot Marigold Abloom
Jun
17
to Jul 15

Pot Marigold Abloom

Calendula officinalis

The pot marigold, Scotch marigold, or ruddles is a flowering plant in the daisy family, Asteraceae. Probably native to southern Europe, but its long history of cultivation makes its precise origin unknown, and it is widely naturalized. The florets are edible and the plant has historically been used as medicine.

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Sweet William Abloom
Jun
5
to Aug 5

Sweet William Abloom

Sweet William

Dianthus barbatus

Sweet William is native to the mountains of southern Europe from the Pyrenees east to the Carpathians and the Balkans, with a related variety in northeastern China, Korea, and southeasternmost Russia. It grows to 13–92 cm tall (depending on the variety) with green to glaucous blue-green tapered leaves. The flowers are produced in a dense cluster of up to 30 at the top of the stems (known as an umbel) and have a spicy, clove-like scent; in wild plants the petals are red with a white base.

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Foxglove Blooms
Jun
1
to Jun 30

Foxglove Blooms

Digitalis purpurea

Common foxglove, Digitalis purpurea, is a biennial or short-lived herbaceous perennial from western Europe in the plantain family that grows in woodland clearings, mountainsides and especially on disturbed sites, as well as being used as a garden ornamental.

Also called purple foxglove, fairy gloves, fairy bells, lady’s glove, or many other things, this plant is widely naturalized outside its native area, commonly near roads and in some places is considered a weed or an invasive.

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Honeysuckle Blooms
May
27
to Aug 6

Honeysuckle Blooms

Honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens)

Also known as coral or trumpet honeysuckle, this is a vigorous, twining vine native to the southeastern United States. It is valued for its ornamental beauty, wildlife benefits, and adaptability in the garden.

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