Extend Your Growing Season

Eating your vegetables is so much easier and more enjoyable when you have grown them yourself.  The flavor is richer, the colors are more vivid and there is something about plucking it from your own soil and putting it straight into your mouth that is extremely satisfying. 

Luckily, here in the Pacific Northwest, all it takes is a little extra planning and care and you could be harvesting crops every season of the year.  Late plantings of warm-season crops such as corn and beans can be harvested until the first killing frost.  Cool-season crops, such as kale, turnips, mustard, broccoli and cabbage withstand frost and grow well during cool fall days.

In truth, some of the best vegetables are produced during the warm days and cool nights of fall.  These conditions add sugar to sweet corn and crispness to carrots.  Parsnips, kale, collards, brussels sprouts, and Jerusalem artichokes are examples of crops that are improved by a touch of frost.

Let’s Get Started
The first step in getting started is choosing vegetable varieties that are well suited for fall and winter harvest.  The chart on the left will help you choose the right vegetable to plant and when you should put it in the ground.  These are my favorites for winter gardening and I hope they will become yours as well.

Crops that go through the winter in mild areas of the Pacific Northwest must be well established, but not mature before the cold days hit.  For this reason, it is very important to pay attention to the recommended planting dates and get most winter crops in the ground during the month advised.

Choose a Garden Spot
The first key to a successful fall or winter garden is location.  It is important to pick a warm location in your yard, such as a south-facing slope that gets as much sun as possible during the shorter days of autumn or winter.  Avoid areas that are exposed to wind or are prone to early frost, like at the bottom of a hill.

If possible, place your garden in a spot that is easily accessible so that you don’t have to trudge through the mud and muck to harvest your crops.

Prepare the Soil
For crops that will be in the garden during the rainy season, it is essential that there is good drainage.  Raised beds are best!  Take the time to amend your soil with organic matter such as compost or peat moss if you have clay soil or it doesn’t drain well. Before planting your fall crops, add a complete fertilizer to your soil to replace and restore nutrients removed by spring and summer crops.  A good fertilizer that I recommend is 16-16-16. 

Cool-weather crops such as cabbage, broccoli, kale, carrots, many salad greens, and brussels sprouts can withstand some frost.  Some of these crops are quite hardy and will survive temperatures well below freezing; others can be damaged by temperatures below 30ºF.  To keep these plants growing well past the first frost, it is a good idea to protect them with a small cold frame or make a cover for them.

Care and Tips for Success
Now that your fall and winter vegetable plants are in the ground, you are halfway there.   If it is hot and sunny when you plant, take extra care to water the new transplants daily at first.  Once the plants are established, you can use a mulch to hold moisture in the soil and control weeds.

Vegetables that remain in the ground throughout the winter require some extra care and consideration.  Following are my suggestions to make your winter garden more successful.

*  Remember to control snails and slugs in August and September, especially if you mulch your plants.  By reducing the population in early fall before
the breeding season, you will have less trouble during the winter (and next spring).

*  Do not fertilize overwintered crops late in the fall.  Too much nitrogen encourages a flush of new growth which is susceptible to freezing.

*  When thinning, leave extra space between plants that will stay in the garden over the winter.  Closely spaced plants don’t receive adequate air circulation and therefore are more susceptible to rot and slug damage in cool, wet weather.

Preparing for Frost
Fall garden care intensifies when the threat of frost enters the picture.  Your main concern should be to harvest all ripe, tender crops before they are damaged.  For example, tomatoes, summer squash, melons, eggplants, cucumbers and peppers cannot withstand frost and should be picked immediately.  Store the vegetables in a cool, dry place until needed.

If the frost warning is mild (the temperature is not expected to fall below 30º F), try covering tender plants that still hold a lot of immature fruit.  Baskets, burlap, blankets or buckets help protect plants from frost.  Warm days will mature some of the fruit as long as the plants have nightly frost protection.

In all, planting vegetables for fall and winter gardening will help you extend your gardening season and allow you to enjoy fresh vegetables every season of the year!