The Victory Garden Thread - September, 2026

September 1, 2026 | Diana in WI/Greeneyes in Memoriam

[Diana in Wisconsin]

The MONTHLY Victory Garden Thread is a gathering of folks that love soil, seeds and plants of all kinds. From complete newbies that are looking to start that first potted plant, to gardeners with some acreage, to Master Gardener level and beyond, we would love to hear from you.

If you have specific question about a plant/problem you are having, please remember to state the Growing Zone where you are located.

This thread is a non-political respite. No matter what, you won’t be flamed, and the only dumb question is the one that isn’t asked.

It is impossible to hijack the Victory Garden Thread. Planting, Harvest to Table Recipes, Preserving, Good Living - there is no telling where it will go - and that is part of the fun and interest. Jump in and join us! Send a Private Message to Diana in Wisconsin if you'd like to be added to/removed from our New & Improved Ping List.

NOTE: This is a once a MONTH Ping List, but we DO post to the thread all throughout the month. Links to related articles and discussions which might be of interest to Gardeners are welcomed any time.

---

TOPICS: Agriculture; Food; Gardening; Hobbies
KEYWORDS: food; garden; hobbies; victory

[Diana in Wisconsin]

[Diana in Wisconsin]

[dakine]

Sitting in Detroit Airport, awaiting flight home. Been a good three weeks - weather past week in Northern Michigan = mid-70s - “Chamber of Commerce” Weather. Wish I could stay for the fall. Maybe next year...

[Carriage Hill]

Please add me to your List.

[Qiviut]

September is starting out as a 'scorcher' .... a front starts coming in Saturday that should wipe the red "alert' days off the forecast. I feel sorry for the folks out in the sunny cemetery for funerals Wednesday & Thursday.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

You’re In! Welcome! :)

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Did you do any fishing? If so, did you catch anything noteworthy?

Or was it golf? Trying to remember...

[left that other site]

Not Officially Autumn Yet

But I Love September!

(((HUGS)))

ML/LTOS

[Diana in Wisconsin]

With all the humidity, it’s supper foggy this morning - I can hardly see the barn!

They’re not issuing any warnings for us - we’ve all been beaten into submission by this summer heat.

90 today, then high 80’s the rest of the week with rain on and off.

I. Want. Fall. Fall and Spring weather are always too short for me!

Back to the kitchen now to chop tomatoes. ;)

[Diana in Wisconsin]

That’s me when Beau takes me for a ride in the Can-Am, LOL!

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Alex Bregman hits 3 home runs and Cubs set team record with 9 in 17-3 rout of Brewers

Calling Mom to see if she's on Suicide Watch, LOL! She loves her Brewer's Baseball...and losing to the Cubs is the WORST a die-hard fan can suffer.

[dakine]

Golf. Six out of Seven days. On the 7th day - eight of us went out to a sand bar on friends boat, anchored ⚓️ and partied like we were 50 or 20 - can’t remember 😀 all the details.

Grew up walleye, perch, and steelhead fishing with my Dad. Now just find Friday perch frys here in Michigan...

[left that other site]

Ha!

Tippy has no use for the Harley, so I go it alone. LOL.

[Paul R.]

We are starting Sept. off like August. Hopefully the garden will keep producing: It’s been a mixed bag this year. The next several days will not be kind to the tomato plants.

The below per NWS; not “brutal”, but the warm nighttime lows will be the worst part, IMO. Plenty warm! (I edited out the long list of counties and towns) :

- - - - - - - -

National Weather Service Paducah KY
1242 AM CDT Tue Sep 1 2026

ILZ075>078-080>094-INZ081-082-085>088-KYZ001>022-MOZ076-086-087-100-
107>112-114-012100-
/O.CON.KPAH.HT.Y.0009.000000T0000Z-260905T0100Z/

1242 AM CDT Tue Sep 1 2026 /142 AM EDT Tue Sep 1 2026/

...HEAT ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM CDT /9 PM EDT/
FRIDAY...

* WHAT...Daily peak heat index values from 100 to 108 degrees.

* WHERE...Portions of southern Illinois, southwest Indiana, western
Kentucky, and southeast Missouri.

* WHEN...Until 8 PM CDT /9 PM EDT/ Friday.

* IMPACTS...Prolonged duration hot temperatures and high humidity may
cause heat illnesses.

* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Heat index values above 100 degrees may
continue into Saturday. Several warm record overnight low
temperatures in the mid-70s is possible this week.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of
the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors.

[Qiviut]

Here are a couple of the jalapeño peppers I picked yesterday. I bought 4 plants at the Farm Bureau this Spring: 1 Pantera, 1 Gigantica & 2 Early jalapeños. Last year I bought Jalafuegos at Walmart & they were fantastic producers - not Bonnie's & Walmart didn't have them this year.

The Pantera & Gigantica plants were eaten by deer - the bottom half of the plant with a few leaves were left. The plants were a little slow growing from that point, but finally took off & are producing well.

From left to right: Early, Gigantica, Pantera. I am super impressed with the Pantera - it's described as a 'jumbo' jalapeño & there are lots of peppers on the plant. The Gigantica are nice peppers with very thick walls. Early peppers aren't impressing me at all - that's a larger one in the picture, most are quite small. As for 'heat", I'll know more when I cut them up to process for pepper jelly.

[redinIllinois]

.

[Paul R.]

I happened to run across this, and thought of your bumblebee problem:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nw5UuFgYB9c

It’s prolly not the solution you desire, though!

[PUGACHEV]

Apropos of chopping tomatoes, I have found a couple of "Midnight Pasta" videos on YouTube which have proven to be a revelation. What you do is slice about 800 grams of cherry tomatoes in half. That's one big box you find at the grocery store. Then, you chop another 250 grams and set that portion aside. Next, you take a handful of basil and remove the leaves, setting the stems aside. You heat some olive oil, add the basil stems, and sauté some chopped garlic and red peppers. Add some oregano and thyme, and the 800 grams of chopped tomatoes, cover and cook on a higher heat for a few minutes. The tomatoes should now be mostly melted, and you crush them and remove the basil stems. Add a cup of pasta water and a tube of tomato paste, some salt, sugar, and half of the basil, chopped, and cook until it becomes an orange mixture. Add more olive oil. While this is cooking, take half a cup of grated pecorino romano and half a cup of grated parmesan cheese (more or less) and add enough hot pasta water to make it into a paste. Add this to the tomatoes and more pasta water if necessary. Cook a little longer and pour it all into a blender and blend until rough, but not smooth. Add the rest of basil and the remaining chopped tomatoes and cook for a short while until the added tomatoes are soft, and you are done.

You end up with an amount of sauce perfect for 1 lb of dried pasta. I prefer penne.

Why the past water, I wondered? It emulsifies the oil and the tomato juice beautifully.

[Paul R.]

I should have said “like a typical August”.

Of note, Our river and reservoir levels in the area look good. Out west...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7URz4IwWjI

:-(

At least, historically, flow in the Upper & Middle Colorado River should begin to increase in Sept.

[Bon of Babble]

Happy September to All! We have been suffering through awful, 100+ degree heat the past few weeks.

A lot of plants don't know what to do, curl up, hunker down, or bloom.

This Monk's Hood cactus loves the heat:

I've been busy replacing a lot of my landscaping with succulents, cacti and aloes, from the meditation garden:

And Big Foot Garden:

Plumerias are in some shade and doing well:

Unfortunately, these spider lilies didn't last long in the heat:

Hot winds are sure to kick up in September, making garden especially difficult, we had some yesterday. Looking forward to fall and cooler weather!

Bon