Fall Vegetable Gardening

Spring-grown, cool-season vegetables are frequently finished by early summer.  Some warm-season vegetables also cease production before fall.  The absence of fall-garden vegetable production from these crops and the open garden space when they are finished both present an opportunity for a fall garden.

Fall gardens, however, are considerably more difficult to grow than spring gardens.  Problems include extreme heat, drought, and difficulty in seed germination, insects, diseases and weeds.  Successful fall gardens require close attention and considerable care from planting to harvest.

The first consideration in planning your garden is where to put it.  You want it fairly close to your house, so it’s handy to work in.  You want it near an outside water faucet, so that irrigation isn’t a problem.  But the thing you really want to be sure about is proper light.  If possible, locate the garden so it gets full sunlight all day.  Unfortunately, few of us enjoy that luxury.  So we have to choose between morning sun and afternoon sun.  in any case plant fruiting crops, such as tomatoes, squash and cucumbers where they will get the most sun.  leaf and root crops generally can stand a little shade.

In some places, wild animals such as rabbits are a problem.  A fence also will serve as a trellis for pole beans, tomatoes and other crops that need support.

In some cases you’ll also have to protect your crops from nearby trees and shrubs roots will compete with vegetables for nutrients and water.  To give your cops the edge, dig a trench about one-and-a-half to two feet deep all around the garden.  Line one side of the trench with roofing proper or plastic film, and fill it in again.  This will form a barrier against the roots of nearby landscape plants.

Of course, good soil is important, unfortunately, as backyard gardeners, most of us have to do the best we can with the kind of soil we have.  However, we can give our gardens a boast by mixing in organic materials, things like manure and compost.  With such supplements, we can grow vegetables even is our home soil is nothing but sand.

In the summer, gardeners are somewhat limited in the different types of warm-season vegetables that can be grown and will survive the heat. Now with cooler days approaching, we have a much wider selection of cool-season vegetables to plant.

In September many vegetables can be planted in the garden including beets, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, collards, kale, kohlrabi, leek, lettuce, mustard, onions and radish. In October, you can plant Chinese cabbage, spinach and strawberries.

These vegetables are best started from transplants but many can be direct-seeded. If you seed them directly into the soil, keep the ground moist while it's still warm to give them a good start. Keep them well watered if you transplant, too. The later you start, the smarter it becomes to transplant to cut the time to maturity.

To find out which varieties are recommended for your area, consult a copy of extension circular SP 103 - The Vegetable Gardening Guide.

By late summer and early fall, insect and diseases have had all summer.  To build up their populations.  Insects such as whiteflies, stinkbugs, aphids and caterpillars are commonly seen.  Since insect and disease pressure often is greater at this time, watch plants carefully for problems and use appropriate control measure promptly when needed.  Contact your local extensions office for control recommendations. 

For more information on “Fall Vegetable Gardening” contact The Gulf County IFAS Cooperative Extension Service or visit our website @ http://gulf.ufl.edu .