Sunday, September 26, 2021
Fall is a great time to garden! You don't have to worry about pests and there is typically good rainfall so you don't have to worry about watering. The crops that thrive in spring, thrive in fall.
For fall gardening, you actually start your seeds in July. These will be the same type of veggies you planted for your spring garden. You may have to start them indoors as some seeds will not germinate in the hot temps of summer. You can extend the fall harvest by covering your veggies with crop fabric when chilly temps arrive in late October.
A rule of thumb is that if you eat the tuber, leaf or flower, it is typically a cold season crop. If you eat the fruit or seed, it is a warm season crop.
Choose the Right Varieties
In addition to choosing the right plants for cold-weather harvests, you can also increase fall harvests by planting specific varieties. Look for varieties marketed as: fast-maturing; short and compact; textured (such as curly kale and Savoy spinach), winter-hardy, frost tolerant, overwintering, for every season, year-round, remarkably cold hardy, etc.
Because daylight hours are getting shorter in the fall, you will need to add about 2 weeks to the “Days to Harvest” your seed packet gives as the seed packet dates are based on spring planting. Plants grow slower in fall because the days are getting shorter instead of longer.
Just like in spring, seeds have to be kept moist to sprout. You can also plant the seeds in peat pots or you can reuse the plastic annual trays you got in the spring. You can put the plastic trays in a water catch pan, find a shady spot convenient to watering, fill with seed starting mix, sow your seeds and keep moist. When the seedlings get their true leaves on them (second set), they are ready to transplant into the garden or a larger pot.
There are some veggies that the temps are too high to germinate in our Zone 6, like lettuce. These you will have to start inside or on the cool side of the house in the shade.
Good choices for fall planting:
Root crops-Beets, Burdock, Carrots, Celeriac, Garlic, Kohlrabi, Leeks, Onions, Parsnips. Radishes, Root Parsley, Rutabaga, Salsify, Scorzonera, Turnips
Greens-Arugula, Celery, Chard, Dandelion greens, Fennel, Lettuce, Mustard, Collards, Chicory, Kale, Sorrel, Spinach, Peas, Fava beans Growing fabulous lettuce and greens
Herbs-Marjoram, Parsley, Savory, Thyme, Sage, Cilantro, Oregano Start a kitchen herb garden!
Below are some general planting times for cool season crops for our Zone 6/7 garden:
July
Beets, carrots, Asian greens (pak choi, tat-soi), cilantro, collard greens, endive, escarole, frisee, fennel, kale, kohlrabi, leeks, mustard, onions, parsnips, scallions, and Swiss chard. Use transplants for broccoli, Brussel sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, Chinese cabbage.
August
The rest of the greens (arugula, corn salad, lettuce, miner’s lettuce, spinach, mustard, endive), kohlrabi, onions, snap peas, scallions, cabbage plants, radishes, and turnips. Peas and Fava beans can be planted in August for spring harvests in Zone 6 or higher.
September
Plant more greens, carrots, and radishes. September is also a great month for starting perennial veggies, fruits, and herbs as well as flowers, trees and shrubs.
October
The month to plant garlic for next year’s harvest and over-wintering onions. Order your favorites early as many sell out quick.
If you don’t want to start seeds, some big box stores and local nurseries have begun to have fall planting veggies. If none in your area do, there are many mail order seed companies that carry fall bedding plants. Late August, early September is the best time to get transplants into the garden for fall and winter harvests.
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