By Nathan Johanning
Now is time to think about those fall cool season crops despite the fact the thermometer feels quite the opposite. I no-till transplanted my fall broccoli & cauliflower August 10. It caught a small shower that day but that didn’t go far and we have watered some to get them established. I also made an attempt at some fall carrots. We will see if I can keep them moist enough to get a good stand and keep the weeds out of them. I have not had a chance to try fall carrots in the field for quite some time.
The summer heat and humidity are still in full force in our region! We have had a short break for part of the second week of August, but we are back to highs in the mid 90s and intense humidity. This has also been coupled with very limited rainfall and what has occurred has been very scattered. At my house, I have recorded 0.63 inches for the month of August from two different pop-up storms. Some have lucked out and gotten more, and others not a drop. Many crops have shown at least some level of stress from the heat and dry at least in the middle of the day, however, most are still holding their own.
We are now in the heart of melon season, along with all the other summer vegetables. Overall, crops have done well, but certainly some crops have benefited from irrigation where available. The peach crop has been very good and is starting to near the end with ‘Cresthaven’ and other later peaches now in season. Early apples like ‘Gala’ and ‘Blondee’ are coming, which always starts to make me think of fall and I know pumpkins are just around the corner.
Source : illinois.edu