Planting Fall Crops
- 1). Choose the crops you want to plant. Popular cool-season crops include broccoli, cabbage, lettuce, spring onions, Swiss chard, carrots, spinach and leafy greens.
- 2). Plan where you want to plant your fall crops. In order to reduce the impact of pests and diseases built up in the soil from your spring and summer veggies, the University of Illinois Extension recommends rotating crops so that you don't successively plant members of the same family in the same spot.
- 3). Calculate the planning date based on the first expected frost in your region. You can find out the first fall frost date by contacting your local extension office or using the frost/freeze data available from the National Climatic Data Center (see Resources). University of Tennessee plant and soil science professor David W. Sams recommends calculating fall planting dates by first deciding on a maturity date for your fall vegetables. This can extend two weeks beyond the first frost date. Find the time to maturity estimated on the seed packet for each crop and add 10 days to account for autumn growing conditions. Subtract this number from the date you want the crops to mature to determine the final planting date for that crop in your region.
- 4). Remove all weeds from the planting site.
- 5). Prepare the soil. Your spring and summer crops have already depleted a lot of the nutritional content, so provide your fall plants with the minerals they need by applying compost, well-seasoned manure or complete fertilizer. Always precisely follow the instructions and quantities recommended on fertilizer packaging.
- 6). Plant the day after a soaking rainfall, or thoroughly water the garden plot the day before you plan to plant. Dry conditions are just one of the challenges your fall crops face that your spring crops don't.
- 7). Plant the seeds. The Virginia Cooperative Extension recommends doubling the planting depth recommended on the package if you're planting during hot summer weather. They also recommend covering rows with boards or a layer of straw to keep temperatures down and protect the emerging seedlings. Remove these covers as soon as seedlings come up from the earth.
- 8). Dress the soil around the plants with a heavy layer of mulch. This helps to conserve moisture and prevents summer weeds from competing with your seedlings.
- 9). Provide water to your plants during weeks without adequate rainfall. The University of Illinois Extension recommends that each plant receive at least 1 inch of water per week, whether from rainfall, irrigation or a combination of the two.
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