Kitchen Gardeners International marks its eighth annual Kitchen Garden Day this Sunday. The stated goals of the event are
To celebrate the positive role of organic kitchen gardening in society, health, and gastronomy; To raise awareness about the benefits of eating local and to encourage people to explore local food options in their areas; To build community spirit, at local and international levels, around the universal experiences of gardening, cooking, and eating.
There are no events organized in our area, so I’d suggest setting aside some time on Sunday to plan your fall and winter kitchen garden. This time of year is, for me, much like late winter for gardeners in colder climates; with the intense heat shutting many plants down, I drag out the pile of seed catalogs and page through them, making long lists of all the colorful vegetables I’d like to plant. Late fall, winter, and spring are great seasons to garden here, and you can overwinter many cool-season crops like greens, brassicas (broccoli, cabbages, etc.), snow peas, and the like. Fall is also the best season to plant trees and shrubs, so they get a chance to develop a good root system before the withering heat of summer; think fruit and nut trees, and berries.
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I was glad to see you’ll be posting more. I always enjoy your posts.
This year has been my first try at gardening. (I’m actually gardening in the De Tonti Square garden that you covered earlier as well as on my back porch.) Do you know where I could find a good timeline for planting in this area? I know I tried some vegetables that just couldn’t handle the heat here even in early summer this year, and I was wondering if you knew of any resources for fall or winter gardening in the Deep South. Thanks again for the great info!
Hi Andrea – Bill Finch and the Press-Register developed a great planting cycle chart just for our area. It’s called the Plain Garden Planting Cycle chart and is available in PDF form at the Press-Register web site. I’ve also heard him say to plant peas at Christmas, which is a little earlier than on the chart. Cool weather crops and herbs do great here over the winter, some things even without protection, though others do benefit from a simple covering if there’s a freeze. I have grown salad greens, for example, throughout the winter.
Thanks so much! That will be a real help.