I don't understand "fall" planting

This is definately a newbie question. Almost all plants and flower seeds planting directions suggest "plant in fall, or early spring". Why would you plant in the fall when winter is just around the corner and there will be frost and massive amounts of water. Doesn't the cold weather hurt the plants or freeze them? Do you have to do anything special if you decide to plant in the fall?

In a climate like yours, fall is a great time to plant, the winter rains actually help plants get established. Here in CA fall is far and away the absolute best time to plant things--the soil is still warm when you're planting, and then rainy season comes and the rains help the roots get developed and established, then in the spring the plants will really take off and grow huge. And then they're really well established by the following summer, so you don't have to water them as much. In colder winter climates (like zone 5/6 and colder) fall planting may not be as advantageous, but in zone 8 it's still a great time to plant things. If you plant the same plant in the spring, the soil is still kind of cold so the roots won't take off like they do in the fall, then before you know it the summer heat is on top of you and you're having to water the plant a lot more than if you'd planted it the previous fall, not to mention the plant is bigger and stronger if you planted in the fall.

In my climate planting in Fall lets the plant have plenty of time to get established before the hot dry weather the following summer-what ecrane said! LOL! Most plants do a lot better planted then. I also like to shake the seed head during fall clean up. Then my larkspurs, hollyhocks come up really early the next year. Hollyhocks do better when they have the winter to grow and they bloom the following spring.

I agree with my friends above. though I am a begginer gardener myself, I have two additions:
1. Some plants do not germinate properly if they do not encounter the coldness of the winter. Good examples are the hard-shelled/woody seeds (pits). Apparently they need great differences in temperature and moisture to break and let the plant sprout. My father was very successful in propagating wallnuts, hazelnuts and wild cherry trees only by planting the pits in the fall. The coldness of the soil in winter followed by the warmth and high moisture in spring (from snow melting) cracks the pits open very efficiently. He lives in a 5b/6a equivalent zone in Europe. I guess this is also what Mother Nature intended for such seeds... Then, in their first year, the germinated plants are quite fragile, so the spring, summer and fall give them enough time to grow and harden a little, and cope with another winter, both below and above soil.
2. Some plants have an "internal clock or termometer", and they need cold temparatures in order to flower in spring. A good and tried example are the tulips (tried them myself, both back home and here in Florida - no winter!!!), but I guess more early-spring flowering bulbs behave this way. They may sprout leaves, but unless they have some wintertime, they will not flower. I guess what I'm doing to have them flower is called "forcing". I create wintertime by storing them potted and well packed in the refrigerator for about two months. This way I've got them to flower, though not with 100% efficiency.

You also have to take into account that plants have a rest period, usually winter, then a growing time and a flowering time, so lets sat you planted Snowdrops in the summer, they would stay dormant till it was their season for flowering, they would never flower in the summer/autumn, so for plants to flower/grow at the right time, nature has taught them to seed, grow and be ready to flower in the time of year they will survive and set seeds for their reproduction to continue. some seeds with a hard coating can be tricked into germination a wee bit sooner, if they are soaked in warm water for a day maybe two days, this warmth helps to break down the hard pit around them, it ain't just gardeners that tell us when to plant, it really is mother nature, also the soil needs to be at the right temp for all the different germination to be successful to each type of plant. hope this also helps you a little bit to understand just a small part of the germination processes. good luck. WeeNel.