September Swelter

This Week’s Sale* for BatesRewards Members: BOGO free on all varieties of #1 Echinacea from Monrovia; PLUS 1 free bag of EarthMix® Garden™ for every $50 you spend!

I don’t think any of us were expecting to be sweating this much in September, but it looks like there’s a break in sight. In less than two weeks, a cold front should be moving in to cool things off. I get it, it’s hard to feel the Fall vibes when you’re on the verge of heat stroke. While we’re waiting for the mercury to drop, there are plenty of things you can plant, so long as you’re willing to water!

We have the first smattering of cold season crops for those who want to get a head start on the season, delicious lettuce bowls ready to harvest, and lovely Autumn color in the form of pansies, violas, sunflowers, peppers, cabbages, mums, and more. If you want to provide some much needed late season nectar to our beloved pollinators, Ironweed, Aster, and Goldenrod are excellent colorful perennials that shine in the seasonal transition.

Those who are worried about bolting, we hear you. The aforementioned lettuce bowls are great because you can easily move them into the shade, and when the season’s over you have a great colander to use or plant up again in the Spring. Keeping your cold season crops moist but not soggy is key to preventing bolting. Mulch can also be helpful in maintaining moisture levels & regulating soil temperature. Seasoned gardeners recommend using a seaweed or kelp fertilizer to help with heat stress tolerance too.

Successional planting is a good strategy if you can’t wait to get crops in the ground but worry about bolting. You can put your first round in now and also start seeds to plant again in a month’s time. For more information, Southern Exposure Seed Exchange has the skinny on succession planting.

That’s it for this week, friends. Tune in Saturday mornings at 8 am for Gardening Inside Out. Queue up the podcast for your next adventure. Follow us on Instagram for behind the scenes fun and know how. We look forward to seeing you soon!

Happy Gardening,

Sara Bates

*Sale is limited to BatesRewards Members (it's free to sign up at checkout), in store only, through 9/17/26