Summer colours and flavours are blossoming beautifully at the Mennonite Heritage Village (MHV), where the Steinbach and Area Garden Club (SAGC) has been hard at work.
Elsie Kathler, coordinator of SAGC’s community service project at the village, shares a mid-season update—along with some sage advice for gardeners looking to stay rooted through late summer.
How the gardening season is going
Kathler says it's been a good growing season despite some challenges.
"Corn requires a lot of heat units to be able to grow properly, and this year we've had a lot of heat units," she says. "Cucumbers are a little slower than usual, but we've already harvested the cabbage before the cabbage butterflies came to destroy them."
She adds the raspberry harvest this year has also been fruitful, with the best crop coming up in years.
Wildfire smoke has had a strange impact on some plants, including crab apples which have ripened earlier than previous years due to the stress smoke puts on them.
"The plant's job is to reproduce itself, so when it's stressed it wants to reproduce seeds as quickly as it can," Kathler explains.
Smoke has also led to early leaf drop, she notes.
Trowel tips for late summer
As the southeast turns over a leaf into late summer, Kathler says it's time for gardeners to start pruning some of their plants, especially those in pots.
She adds those that used a slow-release fertilizer in their plants will also want to look at re-fertilizing at this point.
It’s also a prime time to stay on top of harvesting.
"For example, you should be harvesting your raspberries every two days...harvesting your cucumbers on a regular basis, checking every couple of days to see what beans are ready...and zucchini," Kathler lists.
What the SAGC is up to
Beyond their work at MHV, SAGC members are staying busy in all the best ways.
Kathler says the club continues to grow community through a variety of events and initiatives.
"We have what we call 'Wednesday Walkabouts,' where members will invite fellow members to walk about their garden, learn about what they've planted and enjoy fellowship," she says.
The club also has educational opportunities for members, and brings in guest speakers on a monthly basis.
"In September, we're having a garlic growing coming in to talk about planting garlic, harvesting, and what garlic is good for," Kathler says.
At the MHV specifically, she says the team has taken on some new endeavors, like mulching to preserve soil moisture, and installing soaker hoses in response to climate change.
Photos of the some of the Steinbach and Area Garden Club's work at the Mennonite Heritage Village: