The color has dropped, the days are short enough that you’ll be finishing chores by flashlight if you’re not careful, and the work turns to tucking things in for winter.

October is the month the garden changes coats. Summer crops finish their last warm weeks, and frost starts watching the calendar.

September in the Mid-Ohio Valley is harvest and hope in the same basket: jars on the counter, bulbs in the ground, and cooler evenings on the porch. Stay after the weeds, water the new plantings, and let the garden teach you what earned a place next year.

Let’s get ready for August gardening. We’ve blended Mid-Ohio Valley know-how, WVU Extension tips, and plenty of dirt-under-the-fingernails experience into week-by-week tasks.