Homestead Skills: Fall Gardening
With cooler weather right around the corner (as I’m writing this in August), we’re about to enter a part of the growing season that many people ignore.
Tired from pulling weeds and squishing bugs in the heat of summer, many gardeners give up their activities as autumn approaches. With so many popular vegetables being vulnerable to the coming frost, this is perfectly understandable. The mid-October frosts in my area will kill tomatoes, peppers and many other vegetables. But by choosing the right plants, which can survive into the colder months, we do have an opportunity to garden in weather that WON’T cause a heat stroke.
While most plants require warm weather to grow, some veggies can move the water out of their vulnerable cells as the temperature approaches freezing. The ice crystals form in open spaces between cells, and then melt and reabsorb into the plant cells when the temperatures rise again. Only a prolonged deep freeze can kill these cool weather crops.
Cabbage - tolerates hard frosts, usually 25 to 28 degrees F.
Spinach - can tolerate temperatures in the low 20s and high teens.
Kale - can tolerate temperatures in the low 20s and high teens.
Collards - can tolerate temperatures in the low 20s and high teens.
Lettuce - tolerates hard frosts, usually 25 to 28 degrees F.
Broccoli - tolerates hard frosts, usually 25 to 28 degrees.
Leeks and garlic - can tolerate temperatures in the low 20s and high teens.
Turnip and radish - tolerates hard frosts, usually 25 to 28 degrees.
Ready to try some fall gardening? Join us for the Sustainable Gardening class this fall and learn how to grow your own food!
Written by Tim MacWelch First draft published in his book How To Survive Off The Grid