AAHHHH. Rain. Sweet gentle cool rain. In temperate zones this time of year is thought of as a time of plants beginning to die back and the earth going to sleep until spring. We, my dears are not temperate. Our cycles of green and brown are very murky and indistinct to say the least. Cold chilly dry days, followed by warm wet ones, followed by hot, followed by? Who knows. Right now I see some midsummer Sunflowers mixed with Fall Asters and Goldenrod mixed with Winter/Early spring weeds like Cleavers. The renewing rain sent a bunch of plants into bloom that usually do not bloom at the same time, but hey that’s Central Texas for you. I am able to collect flowers for my wildflower tea! Yet, I can also collect many seeds. What does this mean for you?
Anything goes. As my summer garden plants are producing magnificient amounts of peppers, basil and other things I also have many of my winter lettuces, spinach, peas, and radishes starting to mature. Herbwise, I see all sorts of little babies sending out tentative cotyledons in response to the rain. Who knows what will make it thru the winter. Experiment, don’t pull up anything to quickly. I even had volunteer tomatoes sprout last week. Good Luck and don’t miss our newest addition to the mix: Cleavers sprouting up in the dark corners of woodlands and fencerows!