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It is the beginning of July here in zone 7a. It is hot out and summer has just begun. The kiddos are swimming everyday and getting better with their swim skills. Barbecues are cranking and life is good. Even though we are all sweating our asses off and doing our best to get farm work done early ‘rarely getting out as early as planned’ to cheat the heat.
Talking, thinking about, or even considering starting a fall garden seems absurd during the summertime fun. But, the fact of the matter is, is that this is prime time to start planning what you would like to gift your family, friends, and those in need of delicious nutrient dense food. If you are thinking that it is too early, it is not.
Let’s go over which crops we are able to plant that will grow this time of year and into fall when the weather starts to cool off. The best time to plant. And when you can plan to harvest before the temperatures get too cold.
Table of Contents
- Which Fall Crops Can I Grow Right Now?
- What Hardiness Zone Am I In?
- Should I Consider Crop Rotation When Planning my Fall Garden?
- How To Stay Ahead of The Temperature Change
Which Fall Crops Can I Grow Right Now?
Your best luck will be with vegetables that mature quickly and can tolerate frost. The ‘tough guys’ that can pull their weight during a light frost are:
- Beets
- Chinese cabbage
- Cauliflower
- Celery
- Collards
- Green onions
- Potatoes
- Bibb and leaf lettuce
- Mustard
- Parsnips
- Radishes
- Spinach
- Swiss chard
The ‘body builder tough guys’ that can survive even colder weather include:
- Cabbage
- Broccoli
- Brussel sprouts
- Carrots
- Kale
- Leeks
- Rutabagas
- Turnips
What Hardiness Zone Am I In?
The most important part is learning what plant hardiness zone you are in. We are in zone 7a. Simply head over to almanac.com. Farmers almanac is one of my favorites because, You can simply plug in your zip code and find out.
Then you can access a great planting calendar for your zone with all the important dates you need to know like when to start seeds. Which seeds should be started indoors. It breaks down which crops do better being directly sewn in the garden and when to plant established seedlings.
Why Should I Plan My Fall Garden Now? It’s Summer!
Action class hero gardeners will start planting fall crops in a bed that is free after summer vegetable harvest. We just harvested a bed of garlic, leaving it empty and ready for a new crop. To make use of this space, we will now plant cabbage and broccoli, which are perfect for fall.
Should I Consider Crop Rotation When Planning my Fall Garden?
But, what about crop rotation and not planting certain crops where another certain crop once was. I have never practiced crop rotation on our scale of garden. And I never pay attention to which crops shouldn’t be planted here or there.
I just ‘gorilla’ the damn thing and plant. I am not saying that you should not practice crop rotation. I am just sharing how I roll while keeping things SIMPLE. Our carrots were just harvested as well, so we will be planting more carrots in the same spot at the proper time.
One way to ensure a successful fall garden is properly prepare the bed for a new crop. You can read our blog post Top Ten Gardening Amendments and How to Apply Them to learn more about preparing a garden bed.
How To Stay Ahead of The Temperature Change
Be prepared for freak unseasonable freezes towards the end of fall. Frost blankets are great to have on hand during those oh shit moments. I like to set the hoops on the beds in early fall so that I am ahead of the game if the weather throws a surprise my way. The weather has been so freaky lately, you never know anymore.
Harvest time should line up with how you planned. That means figuring out when the approximate first frost will come and planting early enough so that crops are mature in time. Especially the less frost hardy ones that were listed above.
Depending on your climate and freak weather, you may still need to cover the hardier crops. During the summer season is also an excellent time to plan for crop storage and a game plan. Will you be canning, freezing, fermenting, or freeze drying your bountiful harvest? How about root crops? And having a nice cool spot in the basement to properly store them.
I like to stay ahead of the game whenever possible, to cut down on any stress or running around like a crazy person that didn’t bother preparing.
There is so much you can be doing during the current season to be getting ready for the next season. This leaves most growers actually looking forward to the dark, gloomy, freezing, and ugly winter. Because, we will have a few weeks in the winter to rest, marvel, and eat from our homegrown pantry we worked so hard to stock. But don’t get too comfy, because spring time is right around the corner.
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