BarredBuff
El Presidente de Pollo
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Fall Gardening/Cold Storage/Corn Storage
- Thread starter BarredBuff
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savingdogs
Queen Filksinger
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I don't have answers for you BB but I'd sure be interested in them as well, especially the planting times. I would think we would need to adjust by area though.
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BarredBuff
El Presidente de Pollo
Definitely. I figure we will need to sow the seed here in a couple of weeks...............correct?savingdogs said:
patandchickens
Crazy Cat Lady
All I know about the onion thing is that you need to choose your variety carefully b/c some will not bulb up after midsummer.
For the storage issues:
Corn is usually best stored in something permeable to air, so that moisture doesn't cause mold/rot/etc. It is hard to get corn on the cob appropriately dry for sealed storage b/c of the cob part of the assembly. So something like onion bags, hung where rodents can't get, might be more appropriate? Or boxes with large areas of 1/4" hardwarecloth screening. Same for sunflowers, if you're going to leave them on the flowerhead for storage.
The other things you mention storing have all different storage requirements, some want to be near-but-not-at freezing and pretty damp, others very-cool-but-not-that-cold-and-not-that-damp, onions want to be less cool and pretty dry, etc. Also some should not be stored with others, e.g. the ethylene given off by ripening apples can hasten spoilage of some other things. Find a good book (or website I suppose) on root cellaring.
Pears don't, IME, store especially well. I mean, you pick them a bit green/hard to let them ripen in the house; but they don't *store* well, like apples do. You might want to plan on freezing or canning or whatever for them.
Good luck, have fun,
Pat
For the storage issues:
Corn is usually best stored in something permeable to air, so that moisture doesn't cause mold/rot/etc. It is hard to get corn on the cob appropriately dry for sealed storage b/c of the cob part of the assembly. So something like onion bags, hung where rodents can't get, might be more appropriate? Or boxes with large areas of 1/4" hardwarecloth screening. Same for sunflowers, if you're going to leave them on the flowerhead for storage.
The other things you mention storing have all different storage requirements, some want to be near-but-not-at freezing and pretty damp, others very-cool-but-not-that-cold-and-not-that-damp, onions want to be less cool and pretty dry, etc. Also some should not be stored with others, e.g. the ethylene given off by ripening apples can hasten spoilage of some other things. Find a good book (or website I suppose) on root cellaring.
Pears don't, IME, store especially well. I mean, you pick them a bit green/hard to let them ripen in the house; but they don't *store* well, like apples do. You might want to plan on freezing or canning or whatever for them.
Good luck, have fun,
Pat
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BarredBuff
El Presidente de Pollo
Thanks Pat!
old fashioned
Almost Self-Reliant
I don't know about your area, but here in the NW I'd have to say most of those things should be planted by the end of July for fall harvest. You could count back from mid October to determine your best 'last planting' date.
Again I don't know about your area, but I plant onion sets in the spring & early summer and the longer they are left to grow, the bigger bulbs I get. I've tried planting them in late summer but they don't seem to bulb up much before it freezes around here. Usually turns out okay though & we eat them anyway.
As for storage.....I dunno, it's not something I've tried except for the taters & onions that are bagged & hung in the garage.
Again I don't know about your area, but I plant onion sets in the spring & early summer and the longer they are left to grow, the bigger bulbs I get. I've tried planting them in late summer but they don't seem to bulb up much before it freezes around here. Usually turns out okay though & we eat them anyway.
As for storage.....I dunno, it's not something I've tried except for the taters & onions that are bagged & hung in the garage.
FarmerJamie
Mr. Sensitive
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Wow, buff, you're BACK in force!!! 
My humble contribution
1. Broccoli, cabbage, etc, plant seeds 10-12 weeks prior to your last average frost date. You may need to protect them if the cold comes early
2. I've never really had success with fall peas
3. Onion growth is triggered by length of daylight available. Common maturity is 100-120 days. You could try growing scallions in the time you have left in the season
4. Carrots, sow now, and store in the ground by mulching them thickly as it gets cold. The longer they stay in the ground, the sweeter they get. Just harvest them all before Spring
5. I think others have commented on the storage options. Canning is always an option, too. We've canned a lot of potatoes before and it turned out well for us.
6. Pat nailed it - unshelled corn and sunflowers need ventilation to prevent spoilage - that's why corncribs are built that way.
WZ, pear butter...... 
My humble contribution
1. Broccoli, cabbage, etc, plant seeds 10-12 weeks prior to your last average frost date. You may need to protect them if the cold comes early
2. I've never really had success with fall peas
3. Onion growth is triggered by length of daylight available. Common maturity is 100-120 days. You could try growing scallions in the time you have left in the season
4. Carrots, sow now, and store in the ground by mulching them thickly as it gets cold. The longer they stay in the ground, the sweeter they get. Just harvest them all before Spring
5. I think others have commented on the storage options. Canning is always an option, too. We've canned a lot of potatoes before and it turned out well for us.
6. Pat nailed it - unshelled corn and sunflowers need ventilation to prevent spoilage - that's why corncribs are built that way.
WZ,
pear butter...... 
TanksHill
Super Self-Sufficient
Hey there..
Not sure about fall crops in your area.
But I do have this book and it has a wealth of info on storing "sturdy keepers".
http://www.amazon.com/Root-Cellarin...=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1308953338&sr=1-1
if there is something specific you want me to look up I can.
g
Not sure about fall crops in your area.
But I do have this book and it has a wealth of info on storing "sturdy keepers".
http://www.amazon.com/Root-Cellarin...=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1308953338&sr=1-1
if there is something specific you want me to look up I can.
g
