The Fall Garden Is Calling

Late August may still feel like summer, but gardeners already have one eye on fall. While tomatoes, peppers and other warm-season crops continue producing, this is the season to begin planting vegetables that appreciate cooler days and crisp nights.

A fall garden is not simply the end of summer’s work. It is another opportunity to sow, tend and harvest.

What Gardeners Are Planting Now

Depending on your growing zone and expected first frost date, late summer is a good time to consider planting:

• Lettuce and salad greens
• Spinach
• Kale
• Collard greens
• Mustard greens
• Swiss chard
• Radishes
• Turnips
• Beets
• Carrots
• Green onions
• Broccoli
• Cabbage
• Cauliflower
• Cilantro

Fast-growing crops such as radishes and leafy greens can provide a relatively quick harvest. Slower vegetables—including carrots, cabbage and broccoli—need more time and should be planted with the first frost date in mind.

Working Around the Late-Summer Heat

Cool-season seeds may struggle to germinate in hot, dry soil. Give them a better start by planting during a cooler part of the day, keeping the seedbed consistently moist and using light shade cloth when necessary.

A thin layer of mulch can help retain moisture, but avoid covering newly planted seeds too deeply. Until seedlings become established, check the soil frequently. A shallow seedbed can dry out surprisingly quickly.

Clear, Feed and Replant

As summer crops finish producing, remove unhealthy plants and weeds instead of allowing them to occupy valuable garden space. Healthy plant material can usually join the compost pile, while diseased plants may need to be discarded.

Add a layer of finished compost before replanting. Fall crops still need nourishment, even though the temperatures are becoming cooler.

Don’t Pull Productive Plants Too Soon

If your tomatoes, peppers, herbs or flowers are still healthy and producing, let them continue. A fall garden does not require clearing everything at once.

Use open spaces, containers and newly emptied rows to plant cool-weather crops around the garden you already have. This gradual transition allows summer and fall to share the same ground.

Look Beyond Vegetables

Fall is also a valuable season for:

• Planting many trees and shrubs
• Dividing certain established perennials
• Collecting and saving mature seeds
• Improving garden beds with compost
• Planting cover crops
• Preparing garlic beds for autumn planting
• Creating habitat for beneficial insects and overwintering wildlife

Leave some healthy flower heads standing for birds and seed collection. A garden does not have to be stripped bare to look cared for.

Grow According to Your Garden

Before planting, check the average first frost date for your location and compare it with the crop’s days to maturity. Add a little extra time because plants often grow more slowly as daylight decreases.

Every garden has its own rhythm. Watch where the late-summer sun falls, notice which beds retain warmth and learn where cooler pockets develop. The calendar offers guidance, but the garden itself always has something more to say.

The fall garden invites us to begin again before the current season has completely ended. Sow what still has time to grow, protect what continues to produce and prepare the soil for everything waiting beneath the next season. You got this.

Keep Growing Low N Slow.