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uscjusto

Anyone else prefer the fall growing season?

uscjusto
10 years ago

After growing cucumbers, tomatoes, and melons in the spring/summer, and now growing green leafy veggies, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, and cauliflower in the fall, I think I prefer the cool weather crops better.

No need for pollination, I don't have to water as often, I don't get all sweaty in the heat.

Anyone else prefer the fall growing season besides me?

Comments (13)

  • sunnyinsandiego
    10 years ago

    Me! Especially in inland SoCal... growing anything in the summer is such a challenge when the temps can reach 100+ with dry Santa Ana winds for a week at a time. Spring is great, but it feels like we go from the cold damp dark winter to hot summer almost overnight.

    Honestly, after this first year of growing things in our current place, I'm thinking of taking summers off. I'll water the things that seem to weather through the summer heat despite productivity taking a hit -- eggplants, peppers, and tomatoes -- but not even bother trying to grow much else until the temps drop a bit. Even our squash plants are 300% happier now than in July/August!

  • susanzone5 (NY)
    10 years ago

    I love gardening in spring and fall if only because there are no biting insects and I don't have sweat pouring out of me. I prefer summer veggies, though, so I do the minimum outdoors to keep them going.

  • nancyjane_gardener
    10 years ago

    All of my garden prep (the hard part) is spring and fall. Summer is just watering and picking! I usually do my garden work during the summer during the foggy mornings or after the sun goes behind the cypress trees about 6:00 high summer or 5:00 right now.
    I picked the last of the tomatoes today. There are more, but our nights are getting pretty chilly. That bed will be compost filled, tilled with my mini tiller and planted with cauliflower and broccholi.
    We're still in the 80s and 90s here, but the nights are getting down into the low 40s. I wish it would change to fall!
    Nancy

  • Adam Schaeffer
    10 years ago

    Yes! Love fall and spring gardening here in Austin. The last few summers have been brutal. However, my okra, squash, tomatoes and swiss chard have done extremely well in the heat. Yep, swiss chard did great with the help of some 50% shade cloth. :-)

  • seysonn
    10 years ago

    Fall gardening is very slow and requires little attention. NO watering, NO weeding, NO bugs, ..everything is going and growing very slowly. My winter radish, planted in mid august have yet to grow big roots, onions are taking it easy and the garlics playing PICKY BOO (where are you ?) after 3 weeks. LOL.

  • lkzz
    10 years ago

    First year and I am loving the lettuce. Going to plant a second round this weekend...spinach too. I REALLY like the cooler temps working outside...the mornings are my favorite.

  • Deeby
    10 years ago

    I hate summer, even though I know we reap the benefits in good food.
    I was happy to plant radishes and (the flower) sweet peas yesterday.

  • LAchickchick
    10 years ago

    I think I do, although I'm too new to real gardening to really know. Summers here in the San Fernando Valley can be wicked. Just figuring out what grows this time of year is hard enough for a beginner. I'm kind of looking forward to waking up tomorrow and having coffee in my garden though.

  • uscjusto
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Summer us so frustrating when I walk out in 100+ degree weather and all the leaves of my cukes are wilted, and my other veggie leaves have sunburn.

    My napa cabbage and bok choy are growing so well now!
    Broccoli seedlings are growing slowly, hopefully will start heading in a little while.

  • wertach zone 7-B SC
    10 years ago

    I like it, but I miss the other stuff!

    Lettuce is good, but I don't have good toms for a salad.

    I can only eat so much green stuff without the out of season stuff!

    I love a fresh salad with tomatoes, lettuce, bell and hot peppers, onions, ETC.

    I wonder when the first salad was made. Greens like lettuce and stuff doesn't produce when tomatoes, pepper and the other stuff in salads produce!

    The first salad must have came from a weird climate or from someone that could travel long distances before they spoiled! :)

    Back to the OP, I like the spring better than the fall. After the long cold day's it is refreshing to get out in the warm fresh air and get your hands dirty.

    In the fall, I'm dreading the cold and working too hard to get prepared for it!

    I may have a little prejudgment on this since my job is mostly outside work! I'm getting old and I can take the heat much better than the cold!

  • gjcore
    10 years ago

    I like fall gardening also. I grow a wide variety of greens that do well in the fall. I need to use coldframes though because the growing season is fairly short with the wide swings of temperatures here on the high plains. With the frames I can grow straight through the winter. This year I have Mustard, bok choy, chinese celery, winter lettuce, mizuna, beets, swiss chard, dwarf kale, komatsumu, corn salad, turnips, radish, carrots, baby choy, tarragon, thyme, dill, parsley,
    cilantro and probably a few other things.

    This year I have 4 good size frames compared to 2 last cold season and 3 quick hoops tunnels. I doubt the tunnels are good enough to make it past December. Still figuring out the tweaks I need to make to them.

  • pennypond USDA 10 Sunset 21 CA
    10 years ago

    I prefer fall gardening!!!

    Two things will make it even better. Here in Los Angeles, it seems that any fall patch will become flea beetle haven and hurt summer eggplants. As I expand fall patch, I'm cutting down on next summer's grow area. That's sad!!! Fall seedling is SLOW to start from seeds, at least for me, so I usually have to buy them. Only if I could overcome ...

  • grandad_2003
    10 years ago

    Yep. Add me to the list of those who prefer the Fall garden (for all of the above mentioned reasons...)

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