Gardening by the Numbers

Get out your calendars and your seed packets, because it’s time to plant your fall garden!  I know, it feels way too hot outside to even think about fall, but pretty soon you will be craving those fresh mustard greens.  So, if you have space in your garden from your played-out summer veggies, consider replanting with broccoli, cauliflower, collards, lettuce, mustard, radish, spinach, or turnips. 

The fall garden isn’t without its challenges.  You will have to deal with heat, water stress, insects, and weeds while you wait for cooler temps to arrive.  To cope with these issues, you should plant your seeds at the latest possible date that you can.  That is where the calendar comes in.  Start with the average first frost date for our area.  In Bolivar, the date is October 8.  In Brownsville, the date is October 11.  Next, look on the seed packet and see how many days from planting to maturity are expected.   Add ten days to that number to account for cooler weather and shorter days in the fall.  Subtract the total number of days required for the plant to grow from the date you want it to begin maturing to find the latest planting date. Keep in mind that kale, collards, and other cool season veggies can withstand some frost, and can mature two weeks after the frost date. 

For example, collards can take 65-75 days to mature.  They can also withstand a frost.  Let’s assume that Somerville’s frost date is October 9.  Two additional weeks allowed for frost-resistant veggies puts us at Oct. 23.  Remember, we need to count backwards 75 -85 days to account for the cool fall weather we eagerly anticipate.  So, that puts our planting date for collards at August 8.  That is really soon!  So, don’t procrastinate just because it’s hot and it feels like fall is never coming.  Get out there and use up that open space!  Come October, you will be glad you did!