Our summer here in Tennesse is quickly coming to an end, but that doesn’t mean our garden season is! We’ve been hard at work putting in our fall garden and canning all of the goodies that have come out of the garden.
If you’ve struggled with pests all summer then you may want to try planting a fall garden. For us here in the south many of our garden pests have reached the end of their life cycle or are nearing it. And the best part? Temperatures will soon be cooling down so it won’t be as hard to work outside.
How To Start A Fall Garden
First things first, like any good project you’re going to need a plan to start a fall garden. A printable calendar and a chart to keep track of what seeds you want to plant will be super helpful when planting your garden. Timing is EVERYTHING when it comes to succession planting.
Don’t worry it’s not as intimidating as it sounds! We put together an article with everything you need to know about planning a fall garden and a handy garden planner that you can download and use all year round!
Prepping Your Garden Soil For Planting
Soil is so important when gardening, after the spring planting season you’re going to need to amend the soil before planting your fall garden. And possibly top off your raised beds [want to build raised beds? Check out DIY raised bed tutorial!] before planting.
You want your plants to have the best start they can. Test your soils PH and amend accordingly by adding things like compost, manure (make sure it is composted, fresh manure can burn your plants), peat moss, humus, bone meal, potassium, calcium, magnesium, zinc, lime, sulfur, and molybdenum.
What To Plant In A Fall Garden
What goes into a fall garden anyway? It’s going to depend on your planting zone and how many days you have left until your first frost. You can figure out what your garden planting zone is by checking out The National Gardening Association.
When selecting the seeds that you’ll be planting in your garden make sure that they are quick growing and will have enough time to ripen before your first frost hits. There is nothing worse than losing a watermelon or tomato to the weather loaded in blooms before you ever got to pick anything off of it.
Try planting these:
- Broccoli
- Cabbage
- Asparagus
- Pak Choi
- Parsnips
- Parsley
- Brussel Sprouts
- Cauliflower
- Kohlrabi
- Lettuce
- Mustard Greens
- Radish
- Rutabega
- Spinach
- Chard
- Collards
- Peas
- Scallions
- Squash
- Zucchini
- Cucumber
- Beans
- Onions
- Kale
- Lima Beans
- Arugula
- Fennel
- Turnips
- Garlic
- Carrots
Planting A Garden
Root vegetables, beans, and peas should be sown in the place where they are to grow. Follow the directions on the back of the package for depth. Lettuce and things like them can be started in seed starting pots inside where it is cool and then transferred out into the garden when they have sprouted and gotten established in the pots (and the temperature begins to cool outdoors. Make sure you snag our fall garden checklist!
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