Beginner Gardening: Fall Garden, 1 by Gymgirl

Gymgirl wrote:
Wncchic,
What's your growing zone? Please go to your preferences and include it so we can relate to your zone season/temps.

We're just now cranking up in the South, cause our heat wave just won't let up. Lettuce LOVES, LOVES, LOVES to grow in cooler temperatures. Since you're a container grower (so am I) you're actually a bit ahead of the game. You can plant your lettuce in portable containers and bring them into the garage?shed? if temps dip above freezing (they will freeze...).

If you're growing in ground, you can construct a simple PVC hoophouse over them to protect them from dropping temps.

Cole crops can be grown from fall thru the winter and harvested all the way up to mid-Spring, depending on how hot it gets (they'll start to bolt -- go to seed), or how many bugs start attacking them (cabbage worms, etc.)

I'm making a run to purchase cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli seedlings tomorrow. These LOVE, LOVE, LOVE growing in colder temps (they do beach volleyball around 45-42 degrees) and can withstand freezing temps down to around 28 or so, without damage -- long as it's not sustained freezing temps. I've left mine out for 2-3 days in a row in 35-32 degrees under the hoop cover, with no damage. Broccolis and cauliflowers can go down to around 40ish, before you need to protech them from the cold.

Mustards and collards can go in and can take the cold down to around 38-35 with some protection. They will freeze, so take care.

Turnips, beets, carrots are cold weather. You can also do spinach. Onion sets in November here, and garlic, too.

Google these veggies and read up a bit on them.

Keep us posted on your progress.

Here's a picture of some a' my container (homemade eBuckets) crop of cabbages from last fall/winter.

Linda