The following sentence was posted on the Urban Organic Gardener Facebook page, “My special fall vegetable gardening tip is _____.”
Here are some of the tips that were left:
Justin J Stewart summed it up best when he said, “Don’t give it, you’d be surprised what plants can survive what!”
I couldn’t agree with Justin more. The best way to learn is through your own experiences. Just because something didn’t work for someone else, doesn’t mean that it won’t work for you.
Keep an Eye on the Temperature
“Keep those babies warm and dry,” suggested Andrew Odom from tinyrevolution.us.
Fred J Temple expanded on that and said, “Harvest tomatoes before they freeze or provide means to prevent it (like a greenhouse).”
Erica Stelcik made a recommendation that might be obvious, “Eat your Veggies before they get too ripe. I rarely get to mine on time.”
I hear you on that Erica, I sometimes forget that I’m gardening to eat too.
“Watch your night time temperatures!” warns Cristina Evans. “There’s nothing more disappointing than finding your hard work wilted in the morning.”
The magic number when it comes to getting too cold is usually somewhere in the 40s. Also if there is a huge difference between the daytime and evening temperatures – like 80s at night and 40s during the day. That’s what you want to be weary of.
Before Your Season is Done
Michelle Dahl made a great point to, “Make notes of what went well/bad before you forget for next year.”
We all think that we are going to remember what happened last year, and never do. Taking some notes won’t hurt and will be a great reference point.
Aao Herbs looks out for the wildlife and said, “I never trim my flowers till spring because it’s winter food for the birds.”
Continue Growing Indoors
“Grow your favorite herbs inside in the kitchen window,” suggested Urban Sacred Garden.
For some of us that’s the only space that we have, so might as well use it.
Gloriby Gigi Garcia said to, “Plant a few sugar pumpkin vines in the kitchen 😉 and invest in a grow lamp or two 😉 They make awesome pies, breads, and great gifts for neighbors!”
That definitely struck my interest. Would love to see what that looks like.
Finally BuffaLoam’s comment was to, “Divide and dig up those plants and bring some inside for winter blooms and eats!”
What are some other simple fall vegetable gardening tips?
If you live in a place prone to early Fall snow storms, plant your balcony crops in containers or frames that can be easily moved indoors.
I’ve been fortunate to so far be able to keep my balcony garden going despite temperature lows around freezing every night. I can’t wait for my kale to grow up so I can see how it does through a full-on Colorado winter.
Nice. Luckily it only gets in the high 40s here at night.