Facts on Fall Vegetable Gardening

The practice of fall vegetable planting can be extremely rewarding. The satisfaction of tasting fresh squash, collards, cabbage and onions is surpassed only by the pleasure of bragging rights in October and November when most of your neighbors’ gardens will be barren.

Many plants are well suited for fall crops in Cobb County — beans (lima and snap), broccoli, beets, carrots, green peas, spinach and most varieties of melons, squash and pumpkin.

Most fall crops in Cobb County should be planted from mid-August to mid-September. The time is calculated by starting at the anticipated first frost date, November 13, and counting back the number of days needed for your crop to reach maturity. Ahh, but, there are other factors to be considered. Cool season plants often grow more slowly in cool fall weather and this can add an extra 10 days to harvest time. Add more days if you want multiple plantings to enjoy a longer harvest.

For example, a variety of squash needs 45 days to mature. Your calculation may look like this:

November 13 (estimated first frost date)	11/13
Days to maturity (from seed packet)	- 45 days
	09/22
Cool season crops mature more slowly	- 10 days
	09/12
Multiple plantings/longer harvest (15 – 30 days)	- 30 days
	08/13
Your planting date would be August 13.

Remember that the estimated frost date is just that–ESTIMATED! Although there is a 50% probability that a temperature of 32° will occur on or before November 13, the first frost could be two weeks before or after that date. You may, therefore, wish to subtract even more days from your calculations.

Water deeply in the right amounts, especially during drought, use pesticides properly and fertilize according to your soil test. Your reward will be fresh, tender vegetables throughout the fall when your neighbors are getting their vegetables at the grocery store.

Following are a list of fall crops to consider and approximate dates* for planting. If your seed packet shows a maturity date that calculates planting before August 15, start seeds indoors for late August planting.

Asparagus (Roots)	November	Garlic	8/15 — 12/15
Beans (Bush)	7/01 — 8/06	Kale	8/01 — 8/15
Beans (Pole)	7/01 — 8/01	Lettuce	8/15 — 9/15
Beans (Lima)	7/01 — 8/01	Mustard	8/06 — 9/15
Beets	8/01 — 9/06	Onions	8/15 — 12/15
Broccoli	7/15 — 8/15	Peas (Green)	8/01 — 10/01
Cabbage	8/01 — 9/15	Potatoes (Irish)	7/15 — 8/01
Cantaloupe	8/01 — 9/01	(Red LaSoda are heat-resistant)
Carrots	8/06 — 9/01	Radish (Winter)	8/15 — 10/01
Cauliflower	7/15 — 8/15	Spinach	8/15 — 10/01
Chard	7/15 — 9/15	Squash (Bush)	7/15 — 8/06
Collards	7/15 — 9/15	Tomato	6/01 — 8/01
Cucumber	7/06 — 8/15	Turnips	8/01 — 9/01

Vegetable Garden Calendar, Wayne J. McLaurin, Extension Horticulturist, The University of Georgia College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences, Leaflet 174 Reprinted May 1998

Gardening, Wayne J. McLaurin and Darbie M. Granberry, Extension Horticulturists, The University of Georgia College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences, Bulletin 577 Reprinted August 1992

Scheduling Vegetable Planting to Avoid Cold Injury, Darbie M. Granberry and William Terry Kelly, Extension Horticulturists, Timothy C. Anderson, Program Specialist, Biological and Agricultural Engineering, 1The University of Georgia College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences, Bulletin 577 Reprinted August 1992

The University of Georgia and Ft. Valley State University, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and counties of the state cooperating. The Cooperative Extension Service offers educational programs, assistance and materials to all people without regard to race, color, national origin, age, sex or disability.


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Fact Sheet on Fall Vegetables