GARDEN VISIT/PLANT SWAP/POTLUCK Date: Sunday October 4th. Please email me for address. Arrive 10:00 AM (unload plants and food in driveway and park across road on Sedgwick. Walk around garden, socialize, etc. potluck 12 noon Afternoon-plant swap(informal or prearranged trades), visits to nearby public plantings of hardy palms, crape myrtles, etc. TRADING MATERIALS:Labeled plants, cuttings (rooted or unrooted), shrubs, bulbs, seedlings, seeds, garden ornaments,garden magazines, extra gardening implements, or any other garden-related items. POT LUCK: Please bring a lunch dish (with serving utensil) to enjoy and share. Bring a chair if you have one (extra chairs here if needed). Plates, plastic silverware, napkins, cups, and iced tea & water will be provided. This will be an enjoyable day filled with plants, good plant talk, and delicious food. Feel free to bring a friend. HOPE YOU CAN MAKE IT TO THE SWAP!

Darn, I'm going to miss it again! My own fault, I scheduled a program at the park for Sunday and have to be there. Ah well, some day I'll make it. Looks like you're going to have beautiful weather for the event. Have a great day! Diane

Broad question . . . are you only interested in veggies, or all food crops or all types of plants? Can you plant anything in the ground or are you restricted to containers by your situation? You could plant bulbs for next spring, including garlic which will be ready for harvest in July. Just remember that what you plant in a container to overwinter, the plants should be about 2 zones hardier than in-ground crops, so anything hardy to zone 4 should be fine in a container for you unless you can provide some protection like bubble wrap around the container or leaves or mulch heaped around it. Parsley may be OK for this fall, but it would be too late for me to plant much of any veggies since we will get frost in the next couple of weeks and even radishes don't grow that fast. ;>) Since you are a couple of zones warmer, I don't know what may work for you specifically. You can probably plant some perennial crops like rhubarb or blueberries if those are of interest. You might want to borrow from your library a copy of one of Eliot Coleman's books which are about 4 season growing. He uses unheated tunnels, but his calendar for planting for overwintering crops could probably be adapted to use for late fall harvests, especially if you somehow protect your containers when frost is due. I know he plants many different greens and carrots, but don't remember off the top of my head other crops. He is coastal Maine, but plants most things earlier than this I think.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR & TELL YOUR FRIENDS Here is the basic information: Please email me for address (N.J.) Date: Sunday October 5th, 2008 Arrive 10:00 AM (unload plants and food in driveway and park across road on Sedgwick-no street sign on Sedgwick). Walk around garden, socialize, etc. potluck 12 noon Afternoon-plant swap(informal or prearranged trades), visits to nearby public plantings of hardy palms, crape myrtles, etc. TRADING MATERIALS:Labeled plants, cuttings (rooted or unrooted), bulbs, shrubs, happy seedlings, seeds, garden ornaments,garden magazines, extra gardening implements, or any other garden-related items. POT LUCK: Please bring a lunch dish (with serving utensil) to enjoy and share. Bring a chair if you have one (extra chairs here if needed). Plates, plastic silverware, napkins, cups, and iced tea & water will be provided. This will be a wonderful chance to share our passion for gardening, meet other avid and learning gardeners, have a festive and delicious meal, acquire some new plants & share our extras. In addition, there will be a side trip to visit nearby public plantings which include cold-tolerant palms. This should be a FUN, informal day to share our love of gardening! I'm contacting some gardening friends & posting on several boards. Hopefully we'll have a good crowd. You should bring a gardening friend, too! PLEASE EMAIL if you need the address and so I can get a head count. HOPE YOU CAN MAKE IT TO THE SWAP! pic from last swap needle palm in front yard Dicksonia antarctica Nearby public plantings of trachys, seeding minors, & seeding louisianas 3rd summer for this filifera on a south-facing courtyard surrounded by a building in town a flowering trachy similarly sited http://s117.photobucket.com/albums/o58/SteveNJ7-a/?start=0