Helpful Tips for Growing in September

Fruit Trees

Harvest

Sample one first to see if it is ready. Some varieties ripen only on the tree so if they are harvested before ripening, they will not ripen on the countertop. However some, like figs, may be lost due to mold if you wait too long. So check often.

  • Date Palms: China Ranch Dates are ready now; Khadrawy Dates, and Medjool Dates will start to ripen soon. Harvest when they are just passing their plump stage—beginning to turn color and shrivel. Different dates will ripen at different times on the same cluster. Spread a sheet on the ground to catch any falling as you cut the cluster off with a pole saw and lay in a single layer in about 90 degrees F to dry for about 3 weeks but check weekly for best texture and sweetness.
  • Pomegranates are struggling this year but are usually ripening fall to winter and when they ripen depends on the variety of pomegranate and the climate.
  • Keiffer pears may not be ready until about the end of September or even beginning of October but individual microclimates can vary.  

After your fruit tree has born fruit and temperatures have cooled to just under 100 degrees F

  • Properly “Summer prune” in early fall (instead of summer to prevent too much stress) to channel the tree’s energy into growing where it is most needed. This is typically light pruning for height and for removing dead, dying, diseased, rubbing, or broken branches. Be sure to first spray your loppers, pruners, and gloves with 70% Isopropyl Alcohol to disinfect them. Sharpen loppers, bypass pruners, saws and other cutting tools and tighten the bolts. This makes an easier cleaner cut.

Want someone to come out to show you how to properly summer prune your own trees?

Contact Heather at 702-505-2003 or Heather@vegashomeagriculture.com
  • Fall feed your Citrus, especially if they are producing fruit. They need “prenatals” when producing a lot of fruit and are more vulnerable to pests when they have expended all their energy on producing fruit and surviving the summer heat. Amend with well-composted aged manure and/or compost. Give them some love!
  • Fall feed fig trees: some fig trees which struggled badly in the summer heat are recovering as the days get shorter and nighttime temperatures are slowly dropping. Give them some love and they may give you a small crop this fall!

Watering Schedule

  • Change your irrigation schedule to SNWA’s fall schedule. SNWA appears to be fairly lenient when temperatures are still in triple digits. I wait until just after the triple digits subsided before reducing the water to the fall schedule (about mid-September).
  • The sun rises between 6am to 6:30am and goes down between 6:30pm and 7pm for much of the month of September. Check to make sure the irrigation is working properly.
  • Water after sundown between 6pm and 11am while temperatures are still in triple digits. Hosing down the area after the sun goes down can help cool off the fruit trees and reduce the stress on your plants and give them a break. This is not needed when temperatures are cooler.

Veggies & Herbs

Watering Schedule

  • Most annuals only need water to 8-12 inches deep. Run your irrigation like normal. When it has finished its cycle, plunge an 8-12 inch screwdriver, metal or wooden skewer into the soil. Use a ruler to check if the moisture is getting all the way down to 8-12 inches. If not, then manually turn on your irrigation until the moisture gets down deep enough. This will help you understand how long to water your plants.
  • Each season, double or triple the length of time that you would normally water for just one day. This helps to flush out the salts that tend to build up in the root zone (the area around the roots).  

What to plant now?

  • After the triple digits subside, plant your container garden. Prioritize larger pots for smaller plants. The soil makes a great insulator. Rather than use many small pots, see if you can put multiple plants in a large pot, wooden planter box, or whiskey barrel.
  • See attached list of Cool & Warm Season Vegetable Planting Guide
  • You can start sowing seeds directly while temperatures are still in triple digits if you use:
    • White row cover/frost cloth on hoops
      • Make sure the ends of the row cover are open so wind can pass through as it will allow the heat to escape. 
      • If you have bunnies eating your baby plants or birds eating your seeds right after you plant, cover them the same day you plant so they never see it, close & secure the ends with landscape staples so they cannot get in.
    • OR use 20%-30% shade screens. 
    • You can plant onions and garlic around the perimeter of your garden to deter rats as they don’t like the scent. 

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Got a topic you want to see covered? Email heather@vegashomeagriculture.com

Need help with your garden? Call 702-505-2003