Gardener’s almanac (Oct. 11)
Fescue deadline – If you plan to overseed a fescue lawn yet this year, Oct. 15, which is Wednesday, is the deadline. After that, you can still try overseeding, but your chances for success diminish as time goes on. The biggest challenge, Ward Upham of K-State says, is keeping the grass seed moist. You can put sod down later in the year as well.
Picking peppers – While you’ll want to pick both tomatoes and peppers ahead of the first frost, peppers keep much longer than tomatoes once picked, Ward Upham of K-State says. Plus you can keep them in the crisper drawer of the refrigerator (tomatoes take a flavor hit if refrigerated). Peppers also can be frozen, though they will be mushy once thawed, Upham says. You can dice them into small pieces then freeze them on a cookie sheet before pouring the pieces into a plastic freezer bag for storage, he says. This method can be used for hot peppers as well, Upham says.
Planting asparagus and rhubarb in the fall – Asparagus and rhubarb are usually transplanted in the spring (mid-March to mid-April), Upham says, but they can be moved in the fall. Here are his instructions in the Horticulture 2014 newsletter: Wait until frost browns the tops, then cut plants back to the ground. Prepare the soil, fertilize and plant as you would in the spring. Water well to insure that the roots and soil make good contact. Mulching the rhubarb will help prevent the plant from heaving out of the ground during the winter, but asparagus is planted much deeper so does not require mulch.
Garden events
Project Beauty luncheon – Project Beauty will have a luncheon at 12:30 p.m. Thursday at the Wichita Country Club, 8501 E. 13th St. Eric Cale, director of the Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum, will be the speaker. The cost of lunch is $17. To make a reservation, send a check to Jean Wellshear, 6411 E. Marjorie, 67206, by Monday.
Bootanica – A Halloween-themed family event and fundraiser for Botanica will be from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday; costumes are optional. It will include music and other performances, games and crafts, kiddie rides, animals, face painters and a climbing wall. Admission is $8, $6 for members; children under 3 are free.
Prairie Pumpkin Festival – The Dyck Arboretum of the Plains will have its Prairie Pumpkin Festival from 9 a.m. until dusk Saturday. It will have arts and crafts, food vendors, a pumpkin decoration contest, a hedge-apple launcher, barrel train, hay rack rides, a petting zoo, face painting and duck racing. Pumpkins will be for sale, or kids and adults can bring one for decorating. Admission is $4 for adults, $2 for ages 3 to 15. The barrel train and hedge-apple launcher will cost extra.
Birds of prey talk – Local falconer Nate Mathews will bring a golden eagle and other birds of prey to Botanica on Wednesday for the weekly lunchtime lecture. The lecture, at 12:15, is included in Botanica admission.
This story was originally published October 11, 2014 at 8:01 AM with the headline "Gardener’s almanac (Oct. 11)."