Summer is slipping away, but there’s plenty of growing season yet to come in the vegetable garden, thanks in part to a changing climate. Taking advantage of it just requires some careful plant selection.
The goal is to reap harvests up until and even after the first killing frost of fall. When will it be? Now that nearly all of Albemarle County is in plant hardiness zone 7b rather than the previous 7a, we can expect the first killing fall frost sometime between Oct. 25 and Nov. 5.
What to Plant Now
“Virginia’s Home Garden Vegetable Planting Guide” (VCE publication 426-331) recommends planting times for 40 different crops based on the state’s current plant hardiness zones, updated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 2023. For our zone 7b, the door has shut for frost-tender crops, but there are plenty of other vegetables we can still plant that will thrive as the weather cools. Some will continue to grow and produce even after frost arrives. Now is the time to plant:
- beets (Aug. 10-Sept. 20),
- broccoli transplants (Aug. 10-Sept. 10),
- Brussel sprouts transplants (Aug. 10-20),
- cabbage and Chinese cabbage transplants (Aug. 10-Sept. 10),
- Swiss chard (Aug. 10-Sept. 20),
- kale and collards (Aug. 10-Sept. 20),
- kohlrabi (Aug. 20-Sept. 20),
- head lettuce (Aug. 20-Oct. 1),
- mustard greens (Aug. 20-Oct. 10), and
- turnips (Aug. 20-Sept. 20).
You can also start successions of baby salad lettuce (Sept. 1-Oct. 20), radishes (Sept. 1-Oct. 10), and spinach (Sept. 10-Oct. 20).
Re-energizing the Garden for Fall
Applying a topdressing of several inches of compost as you plant will help reinvigorate soil that’s been in production since spring. To beat the late-summer heat, sow or plant fall crops when the soil is moist, either after a rain or a thorough watering. A light layer of organic mulch such as straw (not hay, which contains weed seeds) will help keep the soil cool and moist, but be careful not to obscure the newly planted seeds from sunlight. Add a heavier layer when the plants are established. Water the garden in dry spells, providing the equivalent of one inch of rainfall each week.
Protect Soil for Next Year
If tending a fall garden doesn’t suit your schedule, there is still work to do. Remove and discard (do not compost!) any diseased or insect-infested plant material. Leaving it in the garden will set up problems for next year. Fresh organic matter, such as shredded leaves, sawdust or cow manure, can be worked into the top several inches of soil or simply applied as a topdressing, leaving it to microbes to do the work of breaking it down.
Above all, protect your soil. Planting a cover crop in the bare earth will reduce soil erosion and suppress winter weeds while also improving water infiltrations and soil “tilth”—the soil structure that helps plants grow. One of the basic principles for maintaining and improving soil health is to keep plants growing throughout the year; the living roots feed beneficial microorganisms and keep the soil biologically active. University of Maryland Extension’s “Cover Crops for Gardens” webpage provides planting instructions, planting times, and seed amounts needed for such options as barley, crimson clover, forage radish, oats, winter rye, hairy vetch, and winter wheat.
If nothing else, put your garden to bed with a heavy blanket of clean straw, preferably three inches or more. (Again, not hay.) This will reduce erosion and compaction, suppress weed germination, and protect the living ecosystem that makes your soil healthy and productive.
Share What You Grow
If your fall garden yields more food than you and your family can consume, don’t let it go to waste. Our Share Your Harvest web page provides a list of food banks and food pantries that accept donations of homegrown produce. As you start your fall garden, consider planting extra crops to share with these local food providers.