With the threat of plunging temperatures I made another trip to the vegetable garden. Mine is down to one head of cauliflower, three heads of cabbage, broccoli side shots, some laggard Brussels sprouts and my fall planting of peas.

One thing I noticed was the lack of insects, especially the aphids I expected to find on the Brussels sprouts. That adds a lot of credulance to the old idea that a heavy rain is one of the best insecticides. I was also surprised at the lack of disease on the cauliflower for which I have no explanation except sanitation and crop rotation. More on that in a few sentences.

The peas, as my wife says, were planted too late. I've eaten a few pods raw and we will get a few for a meal or so. In the spring I figure at least 60 days, so what more can I expect from seeds that found the ground on September 1? I'm afraid that without the extended Indian summer my wife would have been right. Also, after the first light frost my resident rabbits mowed the tops off of them.

Wait to next year. I'll get them planted in early August. Not straying too far from today's topic, I was quizzed several days ago about a patch of strawberries. They did well the first several years but recently seem to be in decline. What could be the problem?

A quick cultural review identified several possible problems. Any planting of strawberries can be expected to last anywhere from two to four picking seasons. Usually weeds and occasionally disease are the determining factor.

One needs to rotate the crop. Do not follow strawberries with strawberries. That is true with any crop be it vegetables, flowers or even fruit trees. A given plant brings certain diseases to and places certain nutritional demands on the soil. Unfortunately, the best tasting strawberry varieties have the most disease problems.

Use of fertilizer is also important. Most of our garden plants are not heavy feeders. Do not over feed. Fertilizer also has an impact on soil pH. Know what effect the fertilizer you are using will have on the soil over time. For example, the azaleas and the general garden need different fertilizers.

Several weeks ago my wife did a thorough cleaning of the garden, removing the residue left by the first killing frost. Sanitation like that is very important if you wish to garden with no or minimal chemicals. A winter cover crop also helps but I seldom get there.

With strawberries, it is best to mow and thin the plants immediately after harvest. This eliminates diseased foliage and exposes the plant to more sunlight. This is also the best, and really the only time, one should fertilize strawberries.

Another thought on strawberry crop in 2003 is the fact that the buds for the crop set at the end of the previous summer. I'm sure with the drought the strawberry plants weren't too happy in August and early September in 2002, thus less production in 2003.

It's about over, but my taste buds have enjoyed the efforts (mostly my wife's) in the vegetable garden. I'm not anxious for winter but you can't have next year without it.