Summer may be at an end, but that doesn’t mean the gardening season has to end with it. The ground is still warm, the weather is still mild and there aren’t as many insects to deal with.
Here at our Mendham, NJ gardener’s supply store, we’re getting plenty of questions from customers on how to tackle the autumn growing season.
It’s a good time to prepare for winter and plant spring-blooming bulbs, but there’s also an opportunity for gardeners who want to boost their vegetable crops.
Here are nine fall vegetables you may want to try this year:
Brussels sprouts – These are tough little veggies, able to withstand early frosts. In fact, Brussels sprouts will taste better after a few frosts. Their seeds germinate best when soil temperatures are still 75-80 degrees.- Cabbage – Don’t think of cabbage as a bland vegetable. Grown at home, it’s fresh and sweet. Plant seeds in late summer or early fall. The seeds will germinate in a little under a week. The smaller the heading size, the sooner you can harvest these plants. Cabbage does well in cool, but not cold, temperatures.
- Arugula – Arugula grows in the same way as lettuce but offers a spicy kick when put into a salad. Seeds will germinate in five days to a week, even if the soil is cold.
- Cauliflower – This veggie can be a challenge. Plant it too late in the summer, it may not reach full maturity depending on where you live. But get it right and you’ll have a delicious vegetable that might even convert the cauliflower haters in your family.
- Garlic – A staple of so many dishes, garlic is very easy to grow. Put cloves two inches into the soil midway through autumn and harvest them in the summer.
Kale and other greens – Healthy and hardy, just a few of these plants will fill your garden bed quickly. Sow seeds in late summer to early autumn, kale, mustard and collard greens are great for cooking, salads or – especially in the case of kale – smoothies.- Onions – Like garlic, onions will grow during the winter, with bulbs appearing in the spring for harvest in the summer. They’re not hard to grow, but you should check with your local Mendham Gardens Center Stores to find the right kind of onions for where you live.
- Peas – Sow pea seeds in late summer or early fall. They’ll germinate in roughly 10 days to two weeks, although this can take longer in cooler temperatures. Peas will climb, so give them something to climb. Sugar snap and snow peas will grow well in cooler weather and are a delightful addition to any cool season garden.
Radishes – These are the fast-growing vegetable you can plant, ready for harvesting in less than a month from seed. They do well in the cool fall soil and come in several varieties. If your only experience with radishes is with the small, hot ones, use this fall to give this tasty, durable crop a second look.- Spinach – Spinach seeds should be sown in early fall. They’ll germinate in just a few days, with plants growing through autumn. They’re hardy enough to handle winter, but you may want to protect them in cold weather by covering spinach with a thin layer of straw, allowing you to enjoy fresh salads well into winter.
Do you need guidance on what fall vegetables to plant this year? Not sure what variety of radish or onion will do well in this part of the state? Visit our Mendham NJ location– or our sister stores in Chester and Annandale – for help.
We have the supplies and expertise to help you grow delicious fall vegetables.