Harvesting Fall Veggies

by Susan Goetz CPH

The tomatoes are ripening and the squash vines blooming as the heat of August comes into the Pacific Northwest. It is prime time for harvesting from the bounty of spring planted vegetables and space is starting to open up again. Once harvested plants are cleared, get ready to plant more and extend the fresh season for a fall and winter harvest. Many cool-season crops will produce well in the fall and may even hold through the winter if protected. Some varieties are even designated for fall planting. Plant seeds like beets, cabbage, carrots, lettuce, green onions, spinach, radishes and turnips. You can even try for another crop of peas, they tend to like germinating in cooler weather so choose heat resistant varieties like Sugar Daddy snap and Oregon Sugar pod II snow peas and keep good watering practices as they grow. If the weather holds mild thru fall you may be able to harvest peas for Thanksgiving dinner. Heat resistant leafy greens like Tyee spinach, Red Sails lettuce and Black Seeded Simpson lettuce can keep fresh salad crops coming into late fall. Other greens such as Chinese cabbage, kale, collards and mustard, hold well into the winter. Carrots planted this season can be left in the ground and harvested all winter if the ground doesn’t freeze and soil is well-draining. Root crops tend to sweeten up as the ground temperature cools, making carrots very tasty. Early maturing varieties of the cabbage family can be harvested in fall or early winter if planted by early August, mid July planting is better for broccoli and cauliflower. Leave room in the garden to plant garlic in October or over winter Walla Walla sweet onions to harvest the following late spring into early summer.

A few tips on successful gardening late in the season; when planning for a longer season of growth, utilize raised beds in a vegetable garden. The soil in raised beds tends to be well-draining and healthier for over wintering crops as fall and winter rainfall becomes heavier. It is also easier to construct a row cover over them if extending the season further is desired. Surround the beds with pathways of sturdy mulch like wood chips or hazelnut shells. This will help your winter garden be easily accessible to avoid slogging through mud to harvest crops. Slugs can also be a major problem in fall and winter vegetable gardens, so be prepared to organically bait for slugs to protect seedlings. Lettuces are particularly prone to attack. For best seed selections, make sure to hit the seed racks now before the stores remove them to make room for all the holiday merchandise that is rolling in.

If you are already missing those fresh picked leaf lettuces that have bolted in the heat, try a late season veggie garden this year.