Gardening

For the Winooski Gardening Group, the end of the season marks another year of a citywide project of growing in unusual and challenging spaces that has been volunteer-run for 26 years.

Color outside of the lines when it comes to fall decorations this season. Instead of just traditional orange pumpkins and yellow hardy mums, get inspired by some of the pastel-colored blue and pink pumpkins, winter squash and gourds then pair them up with bright mums and fall greenery.

Planting some low-growing grasses can add movement and color to your yard and garden. These plants can also be planted in places where you might have traditionally chosen to lay down a layer of mulch.

Certain vegetable plants, if left to bolt or go to seed, will self-sow and grow again next spring. You won't have to buy new seed and replant, which saves money. Plus, by letting the plants self-sow and regrow naturally, you're spending less time guessing when to plant.

Tropical fruits like persimmon and paw paw (a fruit in the cherimoya family) did well in Vermont this year and here's why: because they bloomed later in spring, the late frost didn't affect them. They also did well despite heavy rains this summer.

Invasive jumping worms are in all parts of Vermont except for Essex and Orleans counties, according to Vermont Invasives. These earth worms can cause trouble because of their excessive consumption of organic matter that adversely affects biodiversity.

Late summer blooms like phlox and hydrangea can steal the show with their big blossoms and color. Still, it's a native perennial called helenium that really brings the bees and birds to the yard.

Many Vermont home gardeners might have experienced flooding. If they can, now is an optimal time for home gardeners to replant for a small harvest in September and even into October.

After flood waters recede, home and market gardens can take stock of their gardens and crops and determine what can be saved and how to remediate the soil now for next spring.

East Hardwick homesteader Justin Lander talks about the trials and tribulations of trying to raise all your own food.