We had a very late frost this year. I was still picking tomatoes off of my plants in the middle of October. It didn't officially freeze until the 25th, but the weekend before I tore up my plants and tilled the soil. Ideally, I would put the dead plants into my compost pile, but until we buy a house I don't think I'll have one. I bought three bags of compost from the local nursery and tilled them into the soil after raking out the rows. It's good to add the compost in the fall so it has all winter to break down and create nutrients for next year's plants.
Breaking down your garden is almost gratifying. It's sad to see everything die at the end of the season, but it's the circle of life. By the time October comes around, I've had enough of weeding and watering. It's time for my body and the plants to rest.
Just as soon as I had the garden overwintered, it was time to plan the layout for next year. I am taking careful consideration of crop rotation to keep my soil healthy and pests to a minimum. If you plant the same thing in the same spot year after year, it will deplete your soil of its nutrients.
Today, I spent all morning drawing up a chart showing good companion and bad companion plants. After I had this set, I knew where my garlic could get planted. Garlic is a bulb that has to be in the ground all winter long to be able to grow properly in the spring. It's kind of nice, because once we are pulling out of the long winter, it is such a reward to see life in the garden (with hardly any work).
Here's some pictures of me planting in the slight snow shower today....
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