Planting a fall garden

Planting a fall garden

Last month, we talked about getting out the cool season seeds and starting a fall or winter garden. The weather, again, was weird and temperatures in the high 90s don’t suggest cool season crops. A couple of us standing around in the garden with temperature in the high-90s and we were discussing putting in more tomatoes…

But lets assume it does cool off. If that happens we should be looking at planting veggies from this list:

Asparagus: If you have the patience, asparagus is a great investment. It takes a couple of years before you can bring in a big harvest, but once producing the plants will provide shoots for years. Look for asparagus ‘crowns’ the size of your hand – the bigger the better. Plant the crowns in a trench filled with compost, aged manures and soil. Fill the trench in each year with fresh manures. The crowns will grow when you allow the spear to develop into foliage. Taking too many too early will deprive the roots of the nutrients they need to develop.

Follow this link to read more about how to grow asparagus.

This is a good time to get in your root crops like beets, kohlrabi, chard (chard is related to beets), and turnips. Beets grow all year long, are slower to develop in cold weather, but are sure to please.

You can start putting in the cabbage family plants. These include cabbages, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts.

Other cool weather veggies appropriate for planting now include carrots, endive, garlic, leeks, lettuces/mache, onions, peas, potatoes, radishes, rhubarb, and spinach.

Here are some on-line resources to help you along the way:

Seed Suppliers:

• Renee’s Garden Seeds
• Seeds Of Change
• Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Informational Sources:

• California Gardening Advice from UCCE
• When to Plant Vegetables
• Recommended Vegetable Varieties