Starting Your Fall Garden in Florida and the Southern States
Why September Matters So Much
At the beginning of September, it is still hot, humid, it is downpouring almost every day and then, of course, there is the Hurricane Season. By the end of September, the temperature starts to drop and you will see more flowers and fruit developing on your plant.
Produce, especially the vegetables that flower i.e. Tomatoes, Peppers, Cucumbers, etc., don’t produce well in the summer. The high heat causes blossom drop which means that there is no or minimal fruit production. Then there is also the soil drying out quickly which stresses the plant. Of all the plants that can tolerate the heat conditions is Peppers. If your Peppers look healthy and they are not producing, keep them growing throughout the summer and they will start producing in late September.
In the summer you will have to water and tend the garden in 110⁰ heat and of course the significant humidity. I don’t know about you but that is not my favorite thing to do in the summer for a 78 years old woman. In fact, I think, next year I will be pulling out my plants at the end of June and restarting the garden in September.
If you are growing your own seedlings, use The Harvest Helper Plant Wheel to determine when to start your seedlings in the summer for a Fall panting. I will be giving more information about Winter protection in a later Blog and Instagram posts.
The key to planting in the Fall is to get them into the ground late September or early October. Then there is enough time to harvest before any Winter frosts.
The first plants that go into the garden are of course heat-loving vegetables. Peppers go in first, then after that you plant all the other “summer” vegetables followed by the cool weather vegetables. This is the reverse of the Spring.
Protection from the Elements
Since September is still Hurricane Season, we need to think ahead and decide your method for protecting the garden from a Category 3 Hurricane. If your house is very close to the ocean, you must prepare for stronger winds than inland and you also have to prepare for a possible storm surge. Here are some suggestions.
Huricane
Reinforce all the stakes in the garden
If that is not good enough, lash them down with long tent stakes
Add additional ties to the stakes for the plants
Make sure you have row covers. I would use the thickest plastic row covers you can get, bed sheets or any other method you can think of. If you have a stack of wood then place the logs lengthwise along the row cover and/or bury the edges of the row cover, if possible.
Place hoops over the bed. Then you put your plastic or any other material that you have over the hoops. Don’t forget to bury the edges into the soil or place heavy objects, i.e. logs or anything heavy to prevent them from being ripped off by the wind.
If you have raised beds, then you can clip the row cover to the edge of your raised bed. I bought a bunch of these clips at my local garden center.
Cross you fingers!
Frost
As we get closer to December to February, you should be prepared to protect your plants from the frost. I bought a light that the mechanics use to hang over the motor. If you have electricity near your garden, you can place these lights under your row covers. It is perfect for a small garden but may be more difficult for the larger ones. I have raised beds near the house, so it is easy for me to do this.
You should have your hoops or a little greenhouse frame that you can build out of PVC, ready to throw a plastic or floating row cover, a sheet or blanket or a painting drop clothe over the frame you built.
Remember that these do not have to be see-through. You are only going to put them on the bed for a few days.
Happy Gardening,
Kathy deMaCarty
