Beginner Tips For Fall Gardening

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I know our summer garden is still in full swing, but before you know it’s time to start planning for your fall garden. Early August is the perfect month to start planning and preparing your fall garden.

As B. Franklin said, “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”

I do not want your fall garden dreams to fail, so here are just a few things a beginner gardener needs to know.

Caleb and I haven’t done a fall garden in about 5 years, so I am really excited to do one this year. I think this will be so fun to document our journey to do this together. I’ll do my best to post updates as we go!

We got pretty good at growing tomatoes this summer and I am looking forward to taking my green thumb outside again for our fall garden.

After several days of research here are some beginner fall gardening tips I am going to follow over the next few months.

Plan Ahead for Fall Gardening

Timing is key for fall vegetable gardening, and there are many factors that dictate the ideal time for planting. Fall gardening is best suited for plants that grow quickly and are ready to harvest in a matter of a few weeks since cold weather can be unpredictable.

Find your local first frost date estimate, and use the seed packets’ harvest times to work backward from there. For example, spinach tends to be ready for harvest in 4-6 weeks, so plan to plant it at least 6 weeks before that first frost date to ensure that you will have spinach to pick before too much cold weather hits.

What Should I Grow?

Vegetables and herbs that do well in cooler seasons include the following:

Leafy greens like kale, collard greens, lettuce, and mustard greens
Kohlrabi
Radishes
Turnips
Beets
Peas
Cauliflower
Broccoli
Chives
Cilantro
Parsley
Rosemary
Sage
Thyme

Prepare Your Fall Garden

Before you plant your fall seeds or transplants, it’s essential to clear away plants that are no longer producing fruits or vegetables. This is a crucial step in fall vegetable gardens, ensuring older plants and weeds won’t steal all the water and nutrients you provide to the new seeds. Speaking of weeds, remove as many of those as you can now too.

Fall plants thrive in refreshed, nutrient-rich soil, so feel free to add some compost to the soil as well.

When Should I Plant My Fall Garden?

Early to mid-August is the best time to plant your fall veggies and herbs.

For fall vegetable gardening, you can use seeds, transplants, or a combination of both! If you live in a hotter climate, cool-season fall transplants may do better than seeds, as they can grow during their most vulnerable stages in excellent conditions.

If you decide to go with seeds, try planting them just a bit deeper in the soil because it’s slightly cooler, about an inch further in the ground.

Pamper Your Plants

Now that everything is planted, garden maintenance is your most significant task! A common rule for fall gardening states that fall plants do well with about one inch of water per week, but this can vary depending upon local weather conditions and temperatures.

Also, be sure to look for signs of pests and diseases that can be handled right away when they’re minor problems to avoid more significant issues down the line. Fall gardens are generally less susceptible to pests like summer gardens, so this isn’t usually something to worry much about.

If there is a chance of overnight frost, you can cover your plants with a tarp or an old sheet to keep them cozy and protected. Although, most fall veggies can handle cooler temps than we may think!

Garden in the Kitchen

As the weather gets colder, it is essential to consider gardening in the house and the garden to enjoy certain plants we can’t outside at the moment. Herbs are the lifeblood of your kitchen if you love to cook. Herbs can elevate any meal and will add a fresh flavor that can make any of your culinary delights wow your family and friends.

In the fall, you can install a herb garden in your kitchen and take advantage of herbs throughout the fall and winter while cooking your favorite meals.

When choosing a place to plant your herb garden, choose somewhere that gets a lot of sunlight. A sunny shelf in your kitchen, a hanging herb garden, or a spit by the window is ideal for this. It will allow your herbs to grow and thrive in the fall and winter.

One thing you could do if you have a shady kitchen is to buy a herb garden with a built-in heater. Growing herbs in colder or darker places is a great idea and will keep them healthy for longer.

It is so important when growing herbs that you trim them now and again to keep them healthy and strong. Trimming your herb plants encourages more growth, so when you use your herbs more often in the kitchen, you’ll be encouraging them to keep growing and thriving. If you look after your herbs right, they can last all year and even beyond.

Harvesting Your Fall Garden

Each fall crop has a relatively predictable lifespan, meaning you can approximate how long it will take to reach harvestable size. The lifespan of a crop is usually defined by the phrase “days to maturity,” which should be listed on the seed package or the plant tag.

Due to environmental conditions, days to maturity will vary a bit, but these numbers should be fairly accurate. As a general rule, you should plan your planting so that the crops have time to reach maturity before the first frost. I use Farmer’s Almanac to find our frost dates.

Once my vegetables are ready to be picked, I look forward to grabbing a basket and collecting my bounty! I can’t wait to sautee my collard greens, roast beets or toss together a hearty salad from various pickings.