By Wayne McLaurin
University of
Georgia

Why do gardeners toil in the soil and endure the heat, sweat,
gnats, flies, tomato-eating bugs? If we weren’t optimistic, we’d
all quit. But we’re sure it’s going to be a great fall.

The timely rains are going to continue. Insects will be less
aggressive. Temperatures will be cool in late August and early
September. Our garden is going to be superb.

Optimism, however, will take gardeners only so far. Hard work has
to take over somewhere. And hard work now will add up not just
for a bountiful fall but a great spring garden as well.

Fall gardening tips

Here are some tips that may help you make sure your gardening
optimism will be justified.

First and foremost, remove any plants that aren’t producing
fruit. They harbor insects and diseases.

Turn the soil, if possible. Bury diseases that were on top of the
soil and start with a clean slate for the fall. Plan to mulch to
help smother any emerging weeds.

Refertilize. You probably have some carryover fertilizer in the
soil from the spring garden, but many of the cole crops are heavy
feeders and will need more.

Plan what you want to plant just as you did in the spring. Many
of the same spring crops can be grown in the fall.

Calculate days-to-harvest

Because cold weather will eventually come, one of the most
important things to do is calculate the days-to-harvest for each
kind of vegetable (and cultivar) you plant.

That’s easy to do.

If you’re growing snap beans, which usually take 55 days to
harvest, just count back 55 days from the frost date in your area
and add on two more weeks for harvest time. So if the frost date
is Oct. 31, the latest planting date is Aug. 24.

Mulch will help retain moisture, just as it does in the spring.
But in the fall, it gives the added benefit of keeping the soil
cool under the heat stress of late summer when you’re
planting.

Water the same as for the spring garden: as needed.

The bonus

The bonus to look forward to is that many vegetable crops really
produce better in the cooler weather. Lettuce, turnips, mustard,
collards, kale, etc., seem to develop better flavors.

Both direct-seeding and transplanting work in the fall. However,
seeding does take a little more work, in that you have to keep
the seedbed moist for germination.

This is still easily done, though. Sow the seed in the seedbed
and place newspaper (two to three sheets) over the row. This will
keep the soil cooler and hold in the moisture. Remove the paper
when the seeds germinate and keep the bed adequately watered.

Remember, you can seed many crops (beans, lettuce, mustard,
turnips, etc.) every two to three weeks and harvest over a longer
time. Keep the time until harvest in mind.

If you use transplants, keep them well-watered. With the heat and
sometimes infrequent rain in late August and September, young
plants can dry out easily.

Group veggies

Plant long-term, frost-tolerant vegetables together. These
include beets, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots,
cauliflower, chard, collards, garlic, kale, lettuce, mustard,
onions, parsley, spinach and turnips.

Plant frost-susceptible vegetables together so you can remove
them after the frost kills them. These include beans,
cantaloupes, corn, cucumbers, eggplants, okra, peas, peppers,
Irish potatoes, sweet potatoes, squash, tomatoes and
watermelons.

The quick-maturing (30-60 days) vegetables are beets, bush beans,
leaf lettuce, mustard, radishes, spinach, summer squash, turnips
and turnip greens.

The moderate-maturing (60-80 days) vegetables are broccoli,
Chinese cabbage, carrots, cucumbers, corn, green onions,
kohlrabi, lima bush beans, okra, parsley, peppers and cherry
tomatoes.

And the slow-maturing (80 days or more) vegetables are Brussels
sprouts, bulb onions, cabbage, cantaloupes, cauliflower,
eggplant, garlic, Irish potatoes, pumpkins, sweet potatoes,
tomatoes, watermelon and winter squash.

Most gardeners do better with cooler weather, too. I can picture
us sitting under a tree drinking coffee while we watch those
collards get sweet. Can’t you?

(Wayne McLaurin is a horticulturist with the University of
Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental
Sciences.)