We all know that summer is the best season to grow your crops. The abundant sunlight, optimum temperature, perfect soil composition, and moisture content allow plants like tomatoes, bell peppers, and cucumbers to grow in their best form.
Sadly, summer does not last forever. So in this situation, how can you cultivate vegetables?
How about growing a vegetable garden in the fall? It may come as a shock but you can do that!
In this article, we will talk about the best vegetables you can grow during the fall season and how you can do it. So, read on to know more.
Some Things to Know Before Planting Fall Vegetables
Many of us wonder how can vegetables grow in a dry and frosty climate of the fall season? Well, do not worry!
Various vegetables can grow extremely well during the fall season. However, you may need to follow some tips and tricks to get your fall garden growing effortlessly.
Know the Temperatures
The first important step to start growing vegetables in the fall is to acquaint yourself with the fall temperature.
You need to check the temperatures during September, October, and November. This can help you decide which vegetables to plant accordingly.
I also recommend starting the preparation of your fall garden and planting seeds around July and August.
Clean, Clean, and Clean
Due to the summer, your garden may get messy because of the remnant crops. So, it is very crucial to clean up all the mess to avoid damaging your fall vegetables.
During cleaning, look out for the below hindrances.
- Weeds: I cannot emphasize enough about how necessary it is to check your garden for weeds. Weeds can reduce the efficiency of your plant’s growth.
- Rotten plants: You may have heard about the idiom, ‘the rotten apple injures its neighbors’. So, throw out the remnants of the rotten plants to avoid fungal or other plant infections.
- Extra-Plants: If any extra plants are not growing anymore, I suggest you remove them to clear up space.
Nurture and Replenish Your Soil
Like humans, your soil also requires nurturing for excellent functioning. So, bring out your garden tools and organic fertilizers to get started.
Step 1: Remove the extra mulch like bark mulch or pine needles.
Step 2: Get your garden fork and loosen the tightened soil.
Step 3: Add manure or organic fertilizers to make the soil rich and fertile.
Tip: Try to minimize the use of chemical fertilizers.
Now, you’re ready to plant and grow your fall vegetables!
10 of the Best Vegetables to Plant in Fall Season
There are different types of plants ranging from beans to leafy vegetables that you can grow in the fall season.
Let’s take a detailed look at them.
1. Beans
Beans are some of the most flexible plants to sow in any season. They can endure the hard weather of fall and the sunny weather of spring or summer.
Certain people believe that the taste of fall beans is much better compared to summer beans.
Many varieties of bean, except fava beans (60F to 65F), can grow around the temperature between 70F and 80F. Additionally, I suggest planting of bush beans over pole beans.
2. Beets
Beets are yet another excellent crop to harvest during the fall season. This vegetable is a cool-season vegetable and only grows around spring and fall.
Fall-planted beets have better color and sugar-content compared to spring-planted beets.
The perfect temperature lies between 50F and 60F. Consider planting the seeds eight to ten weeks before the first expected frost of the season.
3. Radishes
Radish is one of the fastest-growing vegetables for the fall season. It just takes about four weeks to mature.
Radish crops do not endure heat and require cool temperatures around 75F for germination. Consider planting the seeds four to ten weeks before the first frost in your region.
Also, plant the crops approx. 2 inches apart to get the best results.
4. Broccoli
Who does not like broccoli enhancing the taste of their pasta dishes or salads? Well, if you’re a broccoli lover, fall is the best season to harvest your organic broccoli.
Harvesting broccoli in spring is harder than harvesting broccoli in fall due to uneven temperatures.
Broccoli requires a cool temperature of around 40F and 70F. It also requires proper sunlight of around six to eight hours per day. Consider planting the seeds 85 to 100 days before the first frost date.
5. Peas
Peas are a universal vegetable. You can use them in almost anything to experiment with your favorite dishes.
Certain varieties of peas like Kelvedon Wonder and Meteor can endure hard temperatures and thus, are suitable for fall.
Peas usually require a temperature between 50F and 75F. Consider planting six to eight weeks before the first frost date.
6. Garlic
Garlic is the magic ingredient for many dishes. It is also one of the best-suited vegetables to grow and harvest in the fall, unlike others.
Fall temperatures allow the roots to grow and also induces the production of the bulb. Garlic requires temperature ranging between 30F and 50F. You can also consider planting the seeds one to three weeks before the first frost date.
7. Cabbage
Cabbage is another fall variety to add to your list. This vegetable is also a cool-season crop that requires low temperatures.
They grow the best between the fall temperatures of 55F and 75F. Also, consider planting your cabbage seeds six to eight weeks before the first frost date.
Additionally, cabbage also requires a minimum of six hours of sunlight to grow efficiently.
8. Turnips
Like other fall vegetables, Turnip also requires cool temperatures to grow properly. The time between late spring and fall is the best time to plant turnips.
You should make sure the temperatures do not exceed 75F in your region before planting the crop in the fall. Consider planting the seeds 10 to 12 weeks before the first frost date.
9. Kale
For all the kale lovers, here is the good news. Kale is a cool-season crop that grows the best in autumn. The leaves are also sweeter when they are grown in cold temperatures.
Kale requires a temperature between 55F to 75F for proper growth. Consider planting the seeds six to eight weeks before the first frost date.
10. Spinach
Spinach is the last to our list today. This leafy vegetable is a cool-season crop and well-suited for fall temperatures.
Additionally, spring temperatures only yield a small amount of spinach. On the other hand, fall produces are much better and higher in number.
The ideal temperature to grow spinach should be less than 75F. Consider growing spinach six to eight weeks before the first frost.
Conclusion
Contrary to many agricultural myths, fall is also the best time to cultivate certain vegetables. Apart from the above-mentioned vegetables, you can also plant parsley, lettuce, kohlrabi, green onions, and many more.
So, bring out your gardening tools and bring out the green in your garden amongst the yellow and orange colors of fall!
