Seeking tips for planting a fall garden

[Purrfluff]

Greetings and salutations!

I was hoping to get some sage advice from those with more experience than I.

For some weird personal reasons I got a bug to plant a fall garden. The bug didn't bite until mid August so I'm kind of a month or two behind fall garden planting.

I've never done this before so I'm not sure what to expect. Here in in the Willamette Valley we (usually) have relatively mild winters. So I'm hoping I have time to get some stuff planted and get some kind of crop by November. The average date of first frost here is around mid November.

I've tried to select veggies that can handle the cold and will still grow a bit in the autumn. So far I've planted: Broccoli, cauliflower, head cabbage, brussels sprouts, kale, lettuce, collards, radishes, corn salad/mache, beans, beets, peas, carrots, leeks, green onions, bok choy, turnips, rutabagas, parsley, dill, kohlrabi, chard, mustard, and spinach.

I also planted some old cucumber seeds and some basil even though I know they won't survive. I've got seeds for broccoli rabb and Chinese cabbage coming in the mail. I considered celery and celeriac but figured it wouldn't actually grow fast enough for a harvest. I planted some garlic cloves but I think I soaked them to death before putting them in soil and are probably toast.

I've gotten germination from most, but not all of the seeds I put in. No true leaves yet except for a couple of bean seedlings.

The hope is that I get some crops that will mature and survive through Christmas.

So... I'm seeking tips, tricks, advice, etc, if you would be so kind. I have a couple of specific issues that are bugging me but nothing major has come up yet.

Thanks in advance and apologies for the long post.

 

[Robert Cummings]

Not sure if you grow parsnips where you are but if you can they taste better after they've had frost on them and are a great winter veg which you grow, pick cook and eat.We don't even store them here as quite happy to stay in the ground till needed.

 

[Purrfluff]

I will have parsnip seeds coming in the mail. I intend to plant them immediately. I have some hopes they will withstand frost and give me a root or two by december. Which could be wishful thinking.

 

[Beth_B]

No advice but that is one heck of a fall crop!

 

[MaryMary]

Welcome to the forum, Purrfluff !!

So... I'm seeking tips, tricks, advice, etc, if you would be so kind.

There is a website I have bookmarked for future reference which may be helpful. I have not tried any of the tips, but a lot of them sound reasonable.

Growers in all types of climates can grow a productive winter vegetable garden. In some areas, this requires the protection of a low tunnel or greenhouse, but in warm climates, winter is the easiest and most abundant time of year in the garden.
In June 2013, we sent a winter gardening survey to thousands of readers all over the United States and beyond, asking growers about their best strategies for growing food in winter. This page includes a large sampling of the responses we received, organized by Growing Zone.
http://www.motherearthnews.com/orga...ues/winter-gardening-tips-zm0z13onzsto#Zone_8

They have posted tips and tricks for zones 3 through 10. If you scroll down to below the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone map, you can click a link to go directly to your zone. (Might also be helpful to read the tips for the next zone colder, too!! .)


Hope that helps, and good luck!! Keep us posted!

 

[Purrfluff]

Thank you! I'll check that out.

Seeds came today so I will sow them. I also tried planting some nasturtium seeds and oddly enough they have yet to germinate after a couple of weeks. My mother has planted nasturtiums before and they gave her no trouble. I must be doing something wrong.

I want those because I hear they can divert cabbage worms/cabbage moths. If my stuff grows well these little buggers will become a serious problem. I have bt spray for them but I've never used it before and am unsure of the efficacy.

Is there a way to speed up the growth of these plants? I figure the majority of their growth will occur in september with maybe some in october.

 

[Purrfluff]

I got my seeds from Territorial Seeds today and have already planted most of them. I was very lucky and found some starts at Home Depot for broccoli, cauliflower, lettuce, and bok choy (they called it "red choi"). I'm hoping these are my backup if the seeds don't pan out.

Oddly enough, at least one row of my bok choy seeds still hasn't germinated. I thought they were usually pretty fast.

 

[Purrfluff]

It may be bad form to add to my own thread but... most of the seeds have germinated after a couple of weeks in the ground. But they aren't growing as quickly as I would have expected (perhaps my expectations were out of whack).

I would have expected some true leaves by now. Would there be any point to putting fertilizer on them at this point? I don't know if the root system is developed enough to actually take in plant food.

 

[Beth_B]

Are they getting enough warmth and light?
Photos would help, if you can.

 

[Purrfluff]

Most of them are planted in full sun. A couple of rows are shaded part of the day by other plants or raised beds. As for warmth... they may be getting too much. It has been unseasonably hot here all summer and the heat continues. It was 99 degrees F today. That is almost unheard of for this time of year in my part of Oregon.

I have been watering them every day. In some instances twice a day because the heat is beating the life out of the more established plants.

Oddly enough I saw a couple of (very tiny) true leaves on some of the dill. But the cabbage family crops and lettuce remain stubborn.

September is going to be their prime month for growth so I want them to get to it.

 

[Purrfluff]

Update on 9/16/2017:

Most of the crops have sprung to life with the nagging exception of the parsnips.

The collards have gone mad. They have grown large very fast. Much faster than I would have anticipated. They are supposed to mature in something like 60-70 days. It's been less than 30.

Some of the bok choy has bolted already. I was floored when I saw the seed stalks. Once again, these plants are less than 30 days old and it's fall. I didn't expect bolting to come, if at all, until November.

I assume this is the result of the unseasonably hot weather we've had in the last month. Even my mother, who has seen it all, was surprised to see the bok choy bolt this fast.

I hope it doesn't turn the greens bitter. I might have time for some succession plantings if I can find space somewhere.

A week of heavy rain is forecast and I don't know what this means for my plants. They could use a good soaking but this may be too much.

 

[Purrfluff]

Update: (Yes, I know this is boring and long winded. Please forgive me) on 9/25/2017:

Three raised opened up so I put some new seeds in. Mostly lettuce along with some peas, carrots, parsnips and some cabbage. I hope I selected either fast growing or cold resistance or both. Seed selection this time of year isn't great except for mail order.

My hope is that the lettuce grows fast enough that some can be harvested in a month or so. If the weather cooperates there may be some into December.

I put in the parsnips purely out of stubbornness. I sowed Cobham Improved parsnips from Territorial seed. Out of at least a hundred seeds sown about a dozen germinated. This is from a variety with "vigorous germination". I'd hate to see what normal germination looks like.

Actually, I will find out since the newly sown parsnip seeds are Harris Model from Ed Hume seeds. If I get even three viable plants out of that seed packet I will be surprised.

Right now I am trying to do mulching. I am finding this more difficult than I expected because in order to get the mulch (usually bark dust) around is causing me to snap a lot of leaves off. The plants are just too low and the leaves too wide to easily get to the roots. I am also unintentionally burying a lot of their leaves under the mulch.

But I've read that a fall garden must have mulch to protect it from cold and dry wind in winter.

I am seeking a secondary source of mulch by raking up fallen tree leaves and then bagging them with the lawn mower. I wanted to use straw mulch but we don't know where to get it, how much it costs, and how to deploy it. I'm also dumping some of the leaves into the compost heap. I am really hoping to re-start the compost pile.

Most of my pea and bean seedings were eaten by damned slugs.

 

[Purrfluff]

Yet another unsolicited update on 10/1/2017:

The weather around here is pissing me off. In my area fall is typically wet. Not this time. I got one day of scattered rain. I am having to water my plants in October for lack of rain. Which is almost unheard of here.

Granted, the dryness gives me more opportunity to get out in the garden. But my plants and the compost heap need a good soaking. The weather forecast shows nothing but dry days. And my father, quite rightly, is peeved about the water bill. I also worry that I am emptying half the clackamas river to water my garden.

The newly sown radishes and some lettuce have already germinated, which is grand. I hope there is enough growing season left for the radishes and lettuce to actually produce something.

I really should have done a better job of thinning my plants when they were smaller. The beets are too close together and I can't figure out where one plant starts and the other begins. After somewhat viciously thinning the beets I think I made a mistake and I'm going to stop thinning.

I do hope my radicchio starts to form heads soon. Along with the cabbage. I have both green and red cabbage in the ground and they have yet to form heads. Oddly, this is true both for the plants I started from seed and the older starts I got from the nursery.

I do fear that I will not get a crop of broccoli or brussels sprouts. The broccoli plants are only about three or four inches high and are leggy. The brussels sprouts plants are even smaller and show no sign of creating a thick stalk for sprouts.

On the other hand I think I will get some decent turnips and rutabagas if they overwinter. The red sails lettuce is doing nicely.

And I was able to harvest some collards and mustard greens. Swiss chard is next and probably a light harvest of butter lettuce. I am waiting for someone to want to eat arugula.

And last but certainly not least: Two of the pea plants have put out flowers!

 

[roadrunner]

I live in Florida with very sandy soil, which doesn't hold water at all. Yet, because of my heavy mulching, which not only traps moisture, but also builds up the sandy soil into crumbly, loamy soil that retains a lot of moisture. I have grown broccoli with no problems and no large water bills -- actually I never watered them.

Maybe look at different ways of gardening. Here's basically what I do...

 

[Purrfluff]

May I ask what kind of mulch you use? I've started mulching my plants but I can't seem to get close enough to the roots withouts smashing the leaves of the crops.

I have used two mulches so far. Bark dust and shredded leaves.