Planning The Fall Garden – Now Is the Time! Part I
Filed Under: Do It Yourself, Organic Gardening on August 3, 2009
Many gardeners miss one of the most productive times of year for gardening. That can be the fall garden. When the spring and summer crops are through (beans, peas, etc.) and the plants are no longer producing, you can use that garden space to grow more plants that thrive in the cooler weather of fall.
The first frost (called the “Killing Frost”) is the first deep-freeze that kills most plants in the late fall. By the time this frost comes, trees will have turned their leaves (changed color) and most wild plants will have been long drying and near to death already. Your garden, however, can have produced twice the crops it would have had you not planted for the fall.
Like any other seasonal gardening, fall gardens require a little bit of planning. Let’s go through the step-by-step process for this.
Frost Dates: Know Your Day of Reckoning
The first thing you’ll need to know is when the last day for growing will be before that Killing Frost comes. As a general rule of thumb, you can take this frost date and count back 14 weeks and that’s when you’ll need to have your seeds started.
I usually subtract an additional week for good measure. Seedlings, if started in large enough containers, can wait an extra week before going into the ground. That’s a lesson hard learned this year, if you read my seed starting information.
My favorite source for a lot of information regarding gardening is the Victory Seed Company. This link goes to their fall frost date calendar. They also have great seeds.
Another good source for weather-related info like the frost is the good old Farmer’s Almanac. You should subscribe. Worth every cent. Here’s their fall frost date calendar.
Pick the Plants for Fall
Now to pick what plants you’d like to plant for your new fall garden project. The amount of space you have and the types of crops you prefer will be the deciders here.
Some of my favorite fall crops are:
- beets
- brocolli
- brussel
- cabbage
- carrots
- Chinese cabbage
- radishes
- rutabagas
There are a lot of others, though. Most cold-tolerant and hardy plants, especially tubers– like potatoes and beets–do well in a fall garden. Some seed packets or gardening guides will say that you’ll get better results sowing directly into the soil of the garden. That may be true for some, but I’ve never had a problem transplanting. I don’t lose any more than I do with other commonly-transplanted plants like tomatoes (20% or so).
Some fall crops have advantages over others. Some like broccoli and cabbage can be planted in fairly high density using staggered rows to produce a larger number of bearing plants per square foot. These plants are fairly tight-leaved and compact, so they work well closer together.
Tubers or root plants can do really well just packed up close and personal like. Some of these crops, like broccoli, can be cut several times before the frost finally kills them.
In Part II of this series, we’ll look at the next steps for your fall garden’s success. These include soil preparation and dealing with the pests that are coming this time of year.
