The key to fall planting starts with knowing your first frost date. Here in my Northeast Ohio 6A garden, I use October 15th for planning purposes. That date can also be pushed out with the use of season extenders like row covers and low/high tunnels.
There are two main groups to focus on in Fall plantings. The first is cold hardy, frost-tolerant, crops. Focus on varieties that are fast maturing and cold tolerant. Johnny’s is a great resource for information on cold hardy varieties.
Lettuce
Everyone loves eating lettuce in the summertime but it can get a bit tricky to grow. That’s because when it’s hot, lettuce can start to taste bitter and can even bolt. Plant lettuce now for fall harvesting. I’m planting Monte Carlo, a romaine head good for overwintering and my favorite head lettuce Dragoon. Its not as cold tolerant as I’d like but the taste is so good.
Bok choy
Now that the weather is starting to cool off, it’s the perfect time to plant bok choy. If you love stir fry, this is an essential ingredient. If you cut the head off about 2 inches above the soil it will actually regrow and give you a second harvest. It will survive down to about 30° so you’ll have a long harvest window. I’m growing Bopak. Its not the best for overwintering but it is what I have and has good flavor.
Spinach
This nutritional powerhouse should be a staple in everyone’s garden. Spinach is light sensitive, meaning it will bolt if it gets over 12 hours of light, making fall and winter the best seasons to grow them. As the temperature decreases, spinach will increase its sugar content to help prevent freezing. This means spring spinach harvested from overwinter plants will be some of the sweetest spinach you’ll eat all year. I’m growing Auroch. Its a great winter variety.
Broccoli Raab
Unlike traditional broccoli, producing one large head, raab has many tiny shoots, making it really quick to maturity. They are very tender and easy to grow. It’s very frost tolerant, down to 25° so now is a great time to get it planted for late fall into early winter harvests. I’m growing De Cicco, an Italian heirloom with a long harvest window.
Carrots
Carrots are a great fall planting into winter harvest crop. When cold weather hits, carrots convert their starches into sugar making them sweeter. Make sure to keep them watered for the first 2 weeks of germination. My go to winter carrot is Napoli. They get very sweet.
Radish
Radishes are very quick to maturity and frost tolerant making them a great crop for late summer or fall plantings. Depending on the variety they can mature in as little as 30 days. I’m growing Red Meat and Crunchy King.
Bunching Onions
If you don’t have enough time left in the season for full bulb onions. Bunching onions is a perfect solution. They can be used anywhere you’d use onions. They are great in soups and stir fry’s. I’m growing two varieties, both good for overwintering, Deep Purple and Evergreen Hardy White. If you are looking to overwinter bulb onions I’m trying out Red Spring and T-448.
Salad Turnips
An important thing to know about turnips is they love cool weather, which helps bring out their natural sweetness. Ideal soil temp is about 60° making it a perfect addition as the weather cools. They are pretty frost tolerant so you’ll be able to harvest well into fall. I’m growing my favorite turnip variety Hakurei.
Peas
Peas are another crop that loves cool weather. Pea shoots are great in stir-fry’s and salads. They will also survive light frosts. When the began to flower frost can damage them. Peas are also a great nitrogen fixer. I’m growing Sugar Snap and Avalanche snow pea.
Kale
Kale is very frost tolerant. It will survive down to temperatures down to 10°, meaning you will be able to harvest it well into winter. It’s a great way to have fresh greens lime winter. I’m growing Black Magic, Winterbor, Redbor and Red Russian.
Collards
Collards are great as a side green or added into soups and stir fries. Can be overwintered with season extenders in colder areas. I’m growing Cash Crop.
Arugula
Like lettuce, Arugula tends to get bitter and bolt in hot weather, making fall an ideal time for this spicy green. It’s a great addition to salads and sandwiches. I’m growing Astro.
Chard
Chard is another cold hardy frost tolerant plant great for fall planting into winter harvesting. Title overwinters well with row covers. I’m growing Bright Lights.
Cover Crops
The second group is cover crops. Some cover crop varieties can be planted into October but for me in zone 6A they tend to do better planted in mid September. I spend the beginning of September pulling out any plants that are diseased, pest ridden, done producing or stuff I have preserved enough to last us a year in order to prepare the ground for cover crop planting.
The cover crop you decide on will be dependent on your soils needs. This year we are growing an organic field pea/oats mix. The peas are a great nitrogen fixer while the oats act as a trellis for the peas and help prevent soil erosion, which is an issue for us as we live on a hill.
I am also planting tiller radish. It is incredible for clay heavy soils.
