In early fall, here are five things to do in the garden to encourage plant growth before harvest and help certain plants overwinter.
The big five
1. Pinch - Right now, vining winter squash and pumpkins are growing rapidly. Still, squash and pumpkins could use some help to get them to harvest.
The method to use is a simple one: pinch! Prune off the growing tip of vining winter squashes and pumpkins, then remove smaller fruits. Those smaller squash and pumpkins just won't have enough time to mature this late in the season.
Pinching or pruning the plant at its growth point helps send more energy into the fruits that are remaining. They'll have more energy to mature, and you'll get better produce.
This same pruning technique works with Brussels sprouts, too. If your Brussels sprouts don't have small sprouts all along the stem, or the sprouts are very small, remove the entire top of the plant. This pruning strategy will send all the energy into the stem to help the remaining sprouts grow larger before harvest.
2. Harvest - As the weather begins to get cooler and if a frost is threatening, go ahead and harvest things like any tomatoes left on the vine. Choose the most blemish-free fruits with any hint of color on them and bring them indoors.
Wash and dry them, then wrap the tomatoes in a piece of newspaper and leave them in a warm, dark place. They'll keep maturing and ripening for you to enjoy.
For even longer-lasting varieties, next year, plant heirloom tomatoes like "Long Keeper" and "Garden Peach."
If you'd like to try out a really long-lasting tomato, go for the Italian heirloom "Pomodoro d'Inverno" — sometimes called "storage tomatoes." These are smaller, grape-sized tomatoes with thick skins and very few seeds inside.
More from Vermont Public: Choose seeds now for tomatoes that last in storage 6 months after harvest
To store these, cut the stems long enough to hang the entire tomato cluster indoors. They're purported to last four to six months!
3. Overwinter - Prep some of your favorite herb plants and vegetable plants to overwinter. If you have herbs in a pot, pull the herb plant out, and remove the potting soil. Wash the pot then add fresh potting soil, cut the herbs back and transition them inside near a sunny window and keep them moist.
Parsley, chives and rosemary will last all winter long and you can harvest from them throughout the winter.
4. Repot - If you have a favorite pepper plant in your garden and you'd like peppers again next year, you can repot it and have it overwinter indoors in a garage or shed.
Begin by cutting the pepper plant back and remove all the leaves. Repot it in the same way as the herbs, then leave the pepper plant in a cool place — around 50 degrees Fahrenheit — with only ambient light.
The plant will go dormant and stay that way all winter long. By spring, the pepper plant will have a mature root system and when you replant it outdoors, it will grow faster and produce fruit sooner.
5. Sow - If you planted self-sowing vegetables and greens, like lettuces and mustards, and you let them go to seed, now is the time to take advantage of all those free seeds!
More from Vermont Public: How to get free garden seeds and help out pollinators at the same time
When the seed heads on the lettuces and mustards are mature, cut them off. Next, sprinkle the seeds from the seed heads around your garden beds. Next spring, you'll have tons of new, free lettuce and mustard green plants.
When planting fall bulbs, should I worry about drought?
Q: I have many perennial gardens. In the last 10 weeks I've received two inches of rain! I have two questions: 1). Should I plant spring bulbs? I've ordered alliums, lilies, crocus and now I'm not sure if I should attempt bulb planting due to the drought conditions. And, 2). Will my perennials recover for next year? - Suzanne, in Saratoga, NY
A: As far as the bulbs, certainly you can plant them, even in a drought. But not just yet. Especially in Saratoga, you'll want to wait until late October or even early November to put bulbs in the ground. If you plant them too soon, they'll start growing this fall, especially if it stays mild.
And yes, your perennials will come back. If they've been healthy, many perennials will make it through some rough growing conditions, in this case, the drought conditions that Vermont, New Hampshire and New York have had this summer and early fall.
Can my fig tree live indoors with me?
Q: Thank you for your piece about growing fig trees! I have a small but very warm south-facing garden space perfect for some potted figs but wonder about what I need to do with them in winter. Do they also get cut back and wrapped like those in the greenhouse and should I bring them inside? I have a very tiny house with not much room. - Andrea, via email
A: You may have seen some gardening tips on Vermont Public's social media feeds, like the one on how to care for fig trees.
If you have a potted fig outdoors right now, let the leaves naturally yellow and drop. Then, as long as the temperature doesn't go below the mid to upper 20s, you can leave the tree outside and let it go dormant.
More from Vermont Public: Fancy up your fruit-growing this summer and plant fig trees in containers
Once dormant, bring it into a place that stays above freezing, but hopefully below 50, like an unheated basement, garage or shed.
Maybe once a month, check the soil. If it's really dry, add a little water. In spring when it begins to green up, move the fig tree in a protected spot for a bit, and then eventually fully outside for the season.
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