Fall is ideal for planting greens and root crops. The soil is warm and easy to work and there are generally fewer weeds, bugs and diseases to deal with. Warm fall days encourage good growth while the cooler fall nights bring out the flavor of your fall crops. Most cool weather crops don't need a full day of sunlight in order to grow. The spot in your garden that didn't have enough light to grow tomatoes, will do just fine for spinach, lettuce or arugula. Make the most of your fall planting by taking time to prepare the ground where you intend to plant.
Your fall crop will only be as good as the soil it's growing in. Dig in 2" to 3" of organic material such as compost and peat moss, then rake it out.
I tend to pant in rows. It's how my Grandma taught me to garden many years ago and it's still effective today.
Once you have your rows set, add some fertilizer to the bottom of the furrow, plant your seeds, cover lightly and water. In just a few short days, you'll find your seeds have sprouted.
Thin the seedlings out at this point.
You'll get bigger, better yields, if you remove every other seedling.
Radishes such as French Breakfast and Cherry Belle can be planted now and will be ready to harvest in less than a month.
Fast growing greens include Arugula (30-50 days), Lettuce (around 45 days) Spinach (40-50 days). Planting starts is another way to have fresh greens this fall.
Look for Broccoli and Kale that's already started. It's easy to take these vegetable starts home and plant them. Don't have room in the garden? Cool weather crops are shallow-rooted so it's easy to plant seeds or starts in a container on the patio.
As the season lengthens, keep a frost cloth handy for those nights when cooler temperatures threaten your crop. This will help extend your "greens" garden well into late fall. There's nothing like a dinner salad picked from your own garden. It's fresh and you know exactly what's in it
No comments:
Post a Comment