🌾 Sunny Farm Week Ahead, Market Back Oct. 17 and Burn Permits Start Wednesday: Your Farm & Garden Report

Or: After the Storm — Garlic, Soil Tests, Storm Limbs and Young Vendors at the Pavilion

Saturday was wind and rain on a metal roof. Sunday is the day the porch door stays open and the chore list finally gets a fair shake.

The Flood Watch for Sequatchie County is over. National Weather Service Dunlap shows leftovers showers tapering this morning, then Columbus Day through Thursday sunny and warm in the mid-80s — the farm and garden reset you’ve been waiting for. The Dunlap Farmers Market is back on the calendar for Saturday, Oct. 17, with a special Young Entrepreneurs Day. Free burn permits begin Wednesday, Oct. 15. And UT Extension still calls this window a fine time for garlic and fall soil tests.

Here’s this week’s report: what the sunny stretch means for pastures and soft ground, when the market reopens and how youth vendors can join, the four-day countdown to burn-permit season, garlic and soil-test guidance for this week and a calm note on hay after a dry summer plus recent rain.

⏱️ What this means for you in 30 seconds

• Weather: Flood Watch over. A few morning showers Sunday; Mon–Thu sunny, highs ~84–88. Next Saturday cools toward the upper 60s.
• Market: Dunlap Farmers Market returns Sat., Oct. 17, 9 a.m.–1 p.m. at Harris Park — plus Young Entrepreneurs Day for youth sellers.
• Burns: Free TDF burn permits required starting Wed., Oct. 15. Stack storm limbs now; get the permit the day you burn.
• Garden: Late October is still garlic time in East Tennessee; fall soil tests let lime work before spring.
• Pasture: Give soft low spots another day or two before heavy traffic; use the sunny week for fence, hay counts and cover crops.

☀️ The Reset Week: Soft Ground Firming, Sunny Mid-80s Locked In

As of Sunday morning, NWS Morristown’s outlook for Sequatchie County shows no hazardous weather expected through the week. The Dunlap point forecast (updated about 6 a.m. Central) calls for a 40% chance of showers mainly before 2 p.m. today, high near 70, then mostly clear tonight near 55. Monday (Columbus Day) through Thursday look sunny — highs near 84 Monday, then around 87–88 midweek. Friday stays pleasant near 82; Friday night dips toward the upper 40s, and next Saturday cools toward the upper 60s.

Saturday’s rain and wind left soft spots in bottoms and around hay rings. Higher ground and gravel lanes should be ready Monday. Low pastures may still cut deep ruts if you push them too soon — think of fresh biscuit dough: press early and the mark stays.

What it means for you: Put the heavy tractor and herd traffic on the firmer ground first. Walk fences and water gaps once it’s safe. Use Monday through Thursday for garden cleanup, soil sampling, stacking limbs, fixing panels and any cover-crop seeding you held back for dry weather. The mop-up chapter is short; the sunny chapter is the prize.

👉 Read more (NWS Dunlap forecast) · Morristown Hazardous Weather Outlook

🛒 Market Returns Oct. 17 — Young Entrepreneurs Day Welcomes Youth Vendors

Last Saturday’s Dunlap Farmers Market canceled for hurricane-related high winds. The season still runs through Oct. 31, and the next date on the calendar is Saturday, Oct. 17, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Central at the Jeff Johnson Pavilion, Harris Park, 245 Cedar Street. Remaining Saturdays after that are Oct. 24 and 31, weather permitting. Vendors grow or make products within about 50 miles of Dunlap.

Oct. 17 is also Young Entrepreneurs Day. Dunlap.Today reported that the market is recruiting young vendors who sell their own handmade or homegrown goods — jewelry, art, baked items, produce, plants and similar youth-made products. Families apply online at dunlapfarmersmarket.com and should note they are applying for the kids market. The source does not list a hard application deadline or exact age range, so apply soon and confirm eligibility with organizers.

What it means for you: Mark Oct. 17 like a church supper you don’t want to miss — eggs, honey, late produce and a chance to cheer on a young neighbor learning to run a booth. If you have a student maker or gardener at home, help them fill out the application this week. Shoppers: bring cash or card, say hello, and treat a first-time vendor the way you’d want Grandma treated on her first bake-sale morning.

👉 Read more (Young Entrepreneurs Day) · Dunlap Farmers Market

🔥 Four Days Out: Free Burn Permits Start Wednesday, Oct. 15

The Tennessee Department of Agriculture Division of Forestry reminds residents that beginning Wednesday, Oct. 15, a free burn permit is required statewide through May 15 to burn leaves, natural debris or conduct prescribed burns. Permits are free at BurnSafeTN.org or the MyTN app, issued only when fire danger is acceptable, and must be obtained on the day you burn. Burning without a permit in season is a Class C misdemeanor. Online permits run seven days a week during posted hours; local city or county rules can be stricter.

This week’s sunny, calmer stretch is perfect for stacking Saturday’s storm limbs into a safe, clear pile — not for lighting them early. Wait for permit season, pick a calm dry day, clear around the pile, keep water and tools handy, and stay with the fire until it’s out.

What it means for you: Circle Oct. 15 on the fridge. Treat early burning like skipping the seatbelt because the driveway is short — the risk isn’t worth the five minutes. Stack now, burn later, and check local rules before you light.

👉 Read more (TDA burn-permit reminder) · BurnSafeTN

🧄 Garlic Season and Fall Soil Tests: Do Both While the Ground Cooperates

UT Extension’s garlic guide (D75) says Tennessee gardeners plant garlic in the late fall. In East Tennessee that often means Sept. 1 through Nov. 1; West Tennessee runs a touch later. You want loose, well-drained soil with pH about 5.8–6.5. Raised beds help where winters stay wet. Plant individual cloves upright, about 1–2 inches deep and 6 inches apart, then mulch with straw to hold moisture and slow weeds. Hardneck and softneck both work here — try a couple of cultivars and see what your kitchen likes.

Fall is also soil-test season. UT’s vegetable-garden guidance says take 10–15 subsamples about 6 inches deep from a consistent area, mix them, air-dry (no oven or microwave), and drop the box at your county Extension office. Fall results give lime and fertilizer recommendations time to work before spring. Boxes and mailing info are available through UT Extension Sequatchie County, 170 Church Street, Dunlap, 423-949-2611.

UT’s 2026 home garden calendar still lists October as a good cover-crop month. Mid-September through mid-October is the ideal cover-crop window in UT research; if bare beds remain, cereal rye or a rye-legume mix can still protect soil once the surface firms.

What it means for you: Think of garlic like setting biscuits out the night before Christmas morning — plant now, harvest next summer. Use a sunny afternoon this week to dig the soil sample, order seed garlic if you haven’t, and seed any thin spot that still needs winter cover. Don’t force a drill through soup; wait until footprints don’t sink.

👉 Read more (UT: Garlic for the Tennessee Garden) · UT Extension Sequatchie

🐄 Hay Counts After a Dry Summer — Rain Helps, Inventory Still Matters

Statewide and regional reports this fall noted that a dry September stressed pastures and hay yields in parts of Tennessee. Up the road in the Upper Cumberland, Extension agents recently described first-cutting hay volumes well below normal and urged producers to count bales now, test hay quality and buy early if supplies look short — before late-winter demand pushes prices. That drought chapter was regional, not a Sequatchie-only bulletin, but the advice travels well: know what you have before February.

This weekend’s rain and the warm sunny week ahead give cool-season grasses a better shot at late growth where soil isn’t waterlogged. Still treat hay like a pantry before a long winter visit — count the jars on the shelf while the store is open.

What it means for you: Walk the hay barn this week. Note how many bales you have, keep them off the ground and under cover, and send a sample for testing if you feed mixed lots. If you’ll need to buy, shop while neighbors still have extras. UT Extension Sequatchie can help with sampling and local forage questions.

👉 Read more (Upper Cumberland forage update) · UT Extension Sequatchie

✅ Your Farm & Garden Checklist for This Sunny Week

• ✅ Give soft low pastures another day or two before heavy cattle or tractor traffic.
• ✅ Use Mon–Thu’s sunny mid-80s for fence walks, garden cleanup and stacking storm limbs.
• ✅ Mark Sat., Oct. 17 for the Dunlap Farmers Market; confirm before you go.
• ✅ Help a young maker apply for Young Entrepreneurs Day at dunlapfarmersmarket.com.
• ✅ Circle Wed., Oct. 15 — free BurnSafeTN permit required that day and after.
• ✅ Plant garlic cloves in well-drained soil; mulch with straw.
• ✅ Collect a fall soil sample (10–15 cores, 6 inches) and drop it at Extension.
• ✅ Seed leftover bare beds with cereal rye or a rye-legume mix once ground firms.
• ✅ Count and protect hay inventory; test mixed lots if you’ll feed them all winter.

Practical rule: Use the sunny week to reset pastures and gardens, stack limbs for after Oct. 15, and get garlic and soil tests in the ground while the window is open.

— Dunlap.Today

📚 Plain-English Farm & Garden Glossary

• Flood Watch: A heads-up that flooding is possible. It is not a warning that water is already in the lane.
• Point forecast: The National Weather Service forecast for one map pin — here, Dunlap — not the whole state.
• Hardneck / softneck garlic: Two main garden types. Hardnecks often have bigger cloves and a flower stalk; softnecks usually store longer.
• Soil subsample: One small scoop from a spot in the garden. You mix many of them so the lab sees the whole bed, not one lucky corner.
• Cover crop: A plant grown mainly to protect and feed the soil between cash-crop seasons.
• Burn permit season: In Tennessee, Oct. 15–May 15, when a free TDF permit is required for debris and prescribed burns.
• Water gap: Where a fence crosses a creek. High water often piles limbs and trash there.
• Young Entrepreneurs Day: A Dunlap Farmers Market session inviting youth to sell handmade or homegrown goods.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Flood Watch still on for Sequatchie County?

No. As of Sunday morning, the local Flood Watch and Wind Advisory for Dunlap/Sequatchie are over. NWS Morristown’s outlook shows no hazardous weather expected through the week. Low spots can still hold water after Saturday’s rain — use ordinary caution.

When does the Dunlap Farmers Market reopen?

Next session on the calendar is Saturday, Oct. 17, 9 a.m.–1 p.m. at Harris Park (Jeff Johnson Pavilion, 245 Cedar Street). Season runs through Oct. 31. Always confirm on the market site or Facebook before you drive in.

How do youth sign up for Young Entrepreneurs Day?

Apply online at dunlapfarmersmarket.com and note that you are applying for the kids market. Products should be handmade or homegrown by the young vendor. Confirm age rules and any fees with organizers — the public announcement did not list a hard deadline or exact age range.

When do burn permits start?

Free Tennessee Division of Forestry burn permits are required beginning Oct. 15 for leaves, natural debris and prescribed burns. Get one the day you burn at BurnSafeTN.org or MyTN. Local rules can be stricter.

Is it too late to plant garlic?

Not in East Tennessee. UT guidance commonly lists planting from about Sept. 1 through Nov. 1. You’re still in the window. Choose well-drained soil, plant individual cloves, and mulch.

Why soil-test in the fall?

Fall samples give you time to add lime or nutrients before spring planting. UT recommends 10–15 subsamples about 6 inches deep from a consistent area, mixed and air-dried. Boxes are available at your county Extension office.

🔗 Other Resources

• UT Extension Sequatchie County
• National Weather Service: Dunlap forecast
• Dunlap Farmers Market
• Dunlap.Today: Young Entrepreneurs Day
• Burn Safe TN
• UT: Garlic for the Tennessee Vegetable Garden (D75)
• UT Gardens: Garlic planting tips
• UT: Soil testing for the vegetable garden
• UT: Fall cover crop selection and planting dates
• UT: 2026 Home Fruit and Vegetable Garden calendar
• Dunlap.Today

🏡 Keep Learning, Stay Calm and Come Back to the Porch

A wet weekend sounds louder than it feels once the sun returns. Mostly it means doing the sensible things — stay off the softest ground a little longer, stack the limbs for after Wednesday, plant the garlic, and show up at the pavilion on the 17th to buy eggs and cheer on a young vendor.

When you want the next calm, practical update for Sequatchie Valley readers, pull up a chair at Dunlap.Today.