Maine Home Garden News
September 2009

September is the
month to . . .

• Plant winter-hardy greens such as mache, baby mustard, and spinach for late fall for fresh eating.  Have frost protection ready (blankets, row cover, etc.) to help your plants get through the frosty nights.
• Harvest onions when the tops are turning brown and falling over. Pull and cure in a sunny area that is protected from rain at least one week before removing tops. When tops are dry, clip and store at near freezing conditions and 65-75% humidity.
• Sow cover crops of oats or barley in open areas of the garden.
• Prepare new garden areas by removing the sod or by layering newspaper (6-10 sheets), compost, and soil to an 8-10” thickness and leave in place until spring. The newspaper and sod should be well decomposed by planting time.
• Apply compost or manure to the vegetable garden. By applying in the fall, you reduce the risk of e. coli contamination.
• Fertilize your lawn. By applying now you will strengthen roots for a healthier, more robust lawn in the spring.
• Watch for fall webworm nests. These perennial pests create spider web type nests in trees and shrubs. Luckily, the defoliation that is caused by the caterpillars results in no permanent damage to the plants. To remove the nests, jam a stick into the nest and twirl like a cotton candy cone to pull the nest out of the tree. 
• If you have apple trees, wait until apples are fully ripe before harvesting. They will taste sweeter and store better.
• Visit your local orchard for fresh apples and cider. Apple varieties mature at different times. Specific varieties are best for fresh eating, baking, pies, storing, etc. This fall, try apple varieties that are new to you. Learn more about apple varieties from our Apples fact sheet, Cornell's Apple Variety List ,and the U.S. Apple Association's Apple Guide. 
• Make a list of problems you encountered with your yard and garden this year. Do some research or contact your UMaine Extension county office to address those problems that will allow for positive changes for next year.
• Watch weather forecasts closely for threats of frost on tender crops. To learn more about frosts, read  "Understanding Frosts," a fact sheet from Cornell Cooperative Extension.

By Barbara Murphy, Extension Educator in Oxford County, bmurphy@umext.maine.edu

Root Cellars for ME
By Richard Brzozowski, rbrz@umext.maine.edu and
Kathy Hopkins, khopkins@umext.maine.edu,
Extension Educators in Cumberland and Somerset Counties 

Despite the challenges of this gardening season, this may be the year you have been waiting for to construct a root cellar. Root cellars are an effective way to store fruits and vegetables at home and may add to a feeling of security by having a supply of garden crops easily available through the long winter. A root cellar is not just thrown together. Some planning is needed to determine if a root cellar is for you. 

Here are some things to consider:

•  How much do you plan to store?
•  Do you have a cellar or cool basement?
•  Is your space ventilated?
•  Is it conveniently located to food prep area?
•  Is it dark? (Light deteriorates some crops.)
•  If floor gets damp, is there drainage?
•  Shelves available?
•  Do you have pests?

Why do you want to use a root cellar? A root cellar offers an economical way to store certain vegetables for weeks or even months without electricity. It is also another way to reduce your carbon footprint.

Where would you put a root cellar? Root cellars can be designed for use above ground, below ground, inside an existing building or outside as a separate structure. The structure can be built of stone, block, brick, earth or wood. Some folks build two-story units to store different vegetables at their proper temperature and humidity conditions.

How big does a root cellar have to be? A root cellar can vary in size. It can be as small as a galvanized garbage can buried below ground or as large as a one-car garage with shelving and other storage areas. Some vegetables like carrots, parsnips, and turnips can be stored in place in the garden well covered with a hay mulch.  Be sure to mark them so you can find them under the snow. The flavor of these vegetables can improve since at temperatures between 28°F and 34^°F the starch in these vegetables changes to sugar. Be sure to mulch them well so that the temperature does not drop below 25^°F or carrots will be damaged.

How can you cool the root cellar? An underground root cellar is naturally cooled. The temperature of the root cellar must be kept cool but not allowed to go below freezing. Most vegetables hold food value and quality best at temperatures between 32 and 50 degrees Fahrenheit. Proper insulation for the structure is a needed to maintain air temperature and humidity. Packing material for the foods can help insulate vegetables from freezing. Packing materials could include clean straw, sawdust, dry leaves or sand. 

What crops should be stored at what temperature? Most root and cruciferous crops prefer cold moist conditions 32°F - 36°F. Potatoes and apples prefer it moist and 36°F - 50°F, but don't store them together since apples give off ethylene that can cause potatoes to sprout. Onions and garlic prefer it cool and dry at 36°F - 50°F. Squash and pumpkins like it warm and dry at 50°F - 60°F. An unheated bedroom suits squash and pumpkins.

How do I keep the root cellar moist? A high relative humidity (about 90%) must be maintained so that food stock maintains a proper moisture level and is not allowed to dry and shrivel. Remember, vegetables are living tissue that are still respiring. To maintain the highest quality vegetables for storage, harvest and quickly cool the produce and then move to the root cellar. To retain moisture, the packing material can be lightly moistened or food items can be wrapped individually in news or tissue paper. Perforated plastic bags can be used for bundles of root crops. Darkness is an important aspect of the root cellar. Keep root cellars dark to prevent sprouting of certain vegetables.

How do I keep rodents and insects out? The ventilation system and all other openings to the outside must be rodent and vermin proof. This can be accomplished through screening and a well-fitted door.

What vegetables do best in a root cellar? Not every vegetable does well in a root cellar. Some fruits and vegetables should be stored separately to avoid spoilage. Some of the foods that best fit root cellar conditions include potatoes, turnips, winter squash, carrots, beets, and cabbage. Select vegetables that don't require high amounts of moisture in storage. Do not wash or shrub vegetables for storage; merely brush soil clods off the produce.

Why should I consider a root cellar now? It will take some time to plan, build and fill your root cellar. Your garden plan will reflect the amounts and types of vegetables for root cellar storage.

What would be some handy tools to havefor your root cellar? 

• Thermometers with minimum and maximum indicators

• Hygrometer to measure relative humidity

• Crates, tubs with tight lids (to deter rodents)

• Shelving

• Straw, sand, wood shavings

• Fans and ventilators for air exchange (these openings should be screened to prevent rodents from entering)

• Notebook or journal

How can I learn more about building a root cellar, growing crops for winter storage and proper storage of fruits and vegetables? To learn more about root cellar construction and use, check out the following resources:

• Root Cellaring by Mike and Nancy Bubel, 296 pages, Rodale Press, Emmaus, PA 1991

• Storage Conditions: Fruits and Vegetables, Bulletin 4135, 8-page publication,University of Maine Cooperative Extension

• Small Scale Post-Harvesting Handling Practices, University of California, 224 pages, available for $21.95 through Johnny's Selected Seeds, Albion, ME 04910-9731

• Storing Fruits and Vegetables at Home, Bulletin EB1326, Washington State University Cooperative Extension

• Storing Vegetables and Fruits in Basements, Cellars, Out Buildings and Pits, Home and Garden Bulletin 119, USDA

• Storing Vegetables and Fruits at Home, Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service HO-125-W

• Root Cellars Post-harvest Treatment and Low-cost Storage of Produce, Maryland Cooperative Extension Fact Sheet 803

• Small Root Cellar Canada Plan Service 6321

Tar Spot on Maple
By James F. Dill, Pest Management Specialist, Pest Management Office, Orono, jdill@umext.maine.edu and Griffin M. Dill, Crop Technician, Pest Management Office, Orono

Tar Spot Early	Tar Spot Pustules Starting	Tar Spot Coalescing	Tar Spot Coalescing Advanced
Photos by James Dill

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So You've Had a Bad Gardening Year
By Richard Brzozowski, Extension Educator, Cumberland County, rbrz@umext.maine.edu

The growing season of 2009 has not been a typical one. Weeks of cool temperatures, too much rain, disease and other problems probably put a damper on your hopes for a “bumper crop” of produce. Here is a list of actions from which you can choose in an effort to eek out something from the season:

1. Think like your grandparents. Be resourceful. Don’t give up. 
2. Some of the plants in your garden can still produce delicious fresh foods. Continue to carefully tend your garden by weeding, thinning, watering and managing pests. Harvest what you can. Finish the season well. Be aware of possible frosts and protect the tender plants that remain.
3. Consider planting a fall garden of greens. You may need to construct a cold frame or temporary hoop house to “buy” some extra weeks of growing to allow your newly seeded crops a chance to produce.  There are several crops that can produce edibles within 30-45 days. Consider radishes, beets, spinach, mesclun, lettuce, etc. For information on extending the growing season, see our fact sheet Extending the Gardening Season or watch our video "Extending the Growing Season."
4. Build the soil for next year’s garden. Use the coming weeks to till new areas; amend areas with compost or farm manures; have a soil test done to determine soil pH and the need for lime. 
5. Consider expanding your garden for next year. This is a great time to build some new raised beds; build or gather containers for next year’s use; clear brush; level land; create paths; remove rocks; stockpile manure and compost. For information on raised bed and container gardening see "Garden Equipment and Items to Make for the Maine Garden," part of our container and raised bed garden fact sheet series, watch our video "Raised Bed Gardens."
6. If your garden was a complete failure, consider purchasing easy-to-store vegetables and fruits from local Maine farmers such as potatoes, rutabagas, turnips, beets, carrots, winter squash, apples, etc. To find farmers near you, visit the Get Real Get Maine Web site. You can search the site by county or product.    Read the article about root cellaring in this issue and identify and adapt a space in your home that is suitable for low cost storage. Consider a closet, an unused bedroom, the bulkhead, garage or corner of the cellar.
7. Consider buying local produce to preserve by canning or freezing. If you need information about food preservation, contact your local Extension Office or take one of our hands-on food preservation workshops or visit our Preserving the Summer Harvest Web site. A newly published and handy, 375-page book on food preservation from the University of Georgia titled “So Easy to Preserve” is available from UMaine Extension publication catalog, or check out our free Let's Preserve fact sheet series.
8. Learn from the situation. Make a list of things you could have done to minimize the impact of a cold and wet summer. Start making written plans for the next growing season.

© 2009

Published and distributed in furtherance of Acts of Congress of May 8 and June 30, 1914, by the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, the Land Grant University of the state of Maine and the U.S. Department of Agriculture cooperating. Cooperative Extension and other agencies of the U.S.D.A. provide equal opportunities in programs and employment.

Call 800-287-0274 or TDD 800-287-8957 (in Maine), or 207-581-3188, for information on publications and program offerings from University of Maine Cooperative Extension, or visit www.extension.umaine.edu.

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