Plant now for winter and spring

Salad burnet in February, tasty in salads

Sunday, September 24, 2017

You can still put out transplants for your winter garden.  Winter producing varieties are the really hardy cold crops that thrive in the cool temperatures of spring, fall and winter. To get the longest harvest possible, look for varieties that say “cold hardy”, “early winter”, “overwintering”, “winter-hardy”, “cold tolerant”, “bred for winter production.”  

With cover, the following will allow you to harvest all winter: arugula, beets, chicory, corn salad, lettuce, mustard greens, parsley root, radicchio, radishes, spinach, and swiss chard.

The following don’t require covering: brussels sprouts, winter harvest cabbage, carrots, collards, kale, kohlrabi, leeks, bunching onions or Egyptian onions, parsnips, rutabagas, turnips, salad burnet.

Any perennial greens can also be planted now.  Your perennial greens and overwintering varieties are the first up in the spring.*Asparagus (planted now for spring)
*Sprouting broccoli (will come back in the spring, too)
*Cabbage (at this point, look for ones with the shortest days to maturity)
*Carrots (can be pulled all winter)
*Chard (will survive winters if placed in a sheltered area)
*Collards
*Corn salad (also called Mache)

Cultivated dandelions (a perennial, harvest all winter)*Egpytian walking onions (harvest all winter)
*Garlic & shallots (planted into late October/early November)
*Kale (winter hardy types survive all winter into spring)
*Lettuce (can germinate at temps as low as 40 degrees F)
*Mustard greens
*Bunching onions (depending on type, ready to harvest late Oct-Dec)
*Overwintering onions (all onions can be left in the ground in Zone 6)
*Overwintering peas (can eat the greens all winter with peas in the spring)
*Radishes (quick to germinate and can be pulled all through winter)
*Rutabaga
*Salad burnet (a perennial)
*Sorrel (a perennial)
*Spinach (many survive the winter to mature in early spring)

Winter lettuce and greens in the mini greenhouse

The transplants provided in nurseries and big box stores this time of year are the ones that are adapted to your area's fall and winters.  You can order onions, shallots, and garlic from many on line catalogs.  I keep trying different varieties every year, looking for the ones that grow well, give the biggest cloves and are easy to peel.

Don't let the coming cold discourage you from edible gardening.  It is not as intense as warmer weather gardening, but with a little planning and some protection, you can have fresh produce all through the winter!