Looking forward to my fall garden

Florida is the best area to have a fall garden, especially where I live. I have decided to go with EBs, 5 gallon buckets and I'm making a new above ground garden from concrete blocks and smart pots for potatoes. I do have some questions as to what to plant in the EBs and what to save for the above ground garden. Here is my tendative plan: I want to grow spinach, lettuce, cauliflower, cabbages, brussel sprouts, broccoli, beets, carrots, cabbage, strawberries, onions, potatoes and asparagus. Ooops and strawberries of course. Obviously the aspargus won't work in the EB; so, that one is definately for the above ground garden or smart pot correct?

Here is what I was thinking for the EBs: spinach, lettuce, cauliflower, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbages and strawberries. Here is what I was thinking of for the smart pots: potatoes, onions? For the above ground garden: beets, carrots and asparagus and brussel sprouts?

Any comments or suggestions? Some of these veggies get planted as early as August and some in September.

The type of spinach that is planted in this area successfully have been Virginia Savoy, Melody, Tyee, Olympia and Longstanding. I want to use it in salads and spinach dips, any variety from the ones I listed come to mind for that purpose?

I also want lettuce, heads and leafs I'm thinking. I was told that if you take the outer leaves they will continue to produce or plant every two weeks new lettuce.

It's been raining like crazy here, hope it cools things down a bit, and I'm looking forward to fall and winter planting, not as many bugs to contend with nor the heat of the summer. But, I do love my peppers, tomatoes, eggplants and cukes and are looking forward to the melons.
joy

Asparagus needs its own box. Very invasive. A good thing if you have it contained. It takes a couple of years to really get going, but well worth it.

Im looking forward to fall as well. I do have some speckled butter beans doing well now, but thats it. Mainly, I pooped out. So hot, so many mosqitos.

There have been very good potato growing threads on the veggie forum in the past.

garden glory: I know, that is why I'm going to do potatoes, I have some references now to look at. I was thinking maybe the above garden bed for the aspargus perhaps? It won't work in the EBs I know that.
joy

Wherever you plant asparagus, there it will stay. Beds can bear for up to 25 years, before the crowns get so crowded that they stop producing decent spears. Also, remember that they will have 4 to 6 feet of fern on the plants throughout the summer which will look untidy, but it needs to stay there until the autumn each year to feed the crowns for the following season. You shouldn't pick any spears in the first year while the crowns are getting established, but the good thing is that it is a no-brainer once it's is in. The taste of fresh, just picked, asparagus is hard to beat - I don't have any at the moment thanks to last years move, but when I did at the last house, none of it EVER got cooked, most of it ended up getting eaten out of hand while I was working in the garden and very little ever made it even into the house!

Kaelkitty: I was thinking an above ground bed just for the asparagus, any pointers you have would be great, as I've never planted it before, any particular variety for NW Florida that you might suggest perhaps?

I'm going to be redoing my garden, especially with what has happened this last week. The birds are now attacking my cherry tomatoes since the corn is done, it's a race to see who gets the tomatoes me or the birds. I will have netting on all, they don't pick melons do they? Or do they? (Now wheres' that shotgun?)LOL
joy

I don't think I can speak on varieties for NW Florida, being down here in Australia! What about checking the varieties listed already here on DG http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/adv_search.php?searcher[common]=&searcher[family]=Liliaceae&searcher[genus]=Asparagus&searcher[species]=&searcher[cultivar]=&searcher[hybridizer]=&searcher[grex]=&search_prefs[blank_cultivar]=yes&search_prefs[sort_by]=genus&images_prefs=both&Search=Search. and reading down to the comments on each page to see if anyone has had good results in a similar climate to yours

Above ground or raised beds are a GOOD idea - they help the soil warm at the beginning of the season. Asparagus roots run deep though the crowns themselves should only be at about 6 inches or so under the ground. There are some amusing comments on the subject here: http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/cornucop/msg0315480024355.html

Best of Luck, KK.

Kaelkitty: Thanks for the link and the encouragement; but, I think I might pass this fall on asparagus. I might even pass on the above ground bed for a bit, now that I'm looking at smart pots. I have a dwarf pomegrante and dwarf banana tree coming in September from Henry Field's and was thinking planting them in smart pots that are 20-30 gallon size, they would be easy enough to move if it got too cold for them. I am definately going with the smart pots the #15's for my potatoes and might use the 10 gallon ones for beets, carrots and onions, I might also decide to plant the beets and carrots in the EB also; haven't made my mind up yet; and know I gotta do it soon..... August is next month.
joy