Fall gardening in Florida can be an enriching experience filled with learning, fulfillment, and tasty foods. However, maintaining a garden is no easy feat, especially in a climate such as Florida’s. Here are a few important factors that contribute to the production of a healthy, long-lasting fall garden.
Choosing Crops
Choosing plants that do well in your climate and season is essential to a successful garden. According to a blog written by gardening specialist and urban backyard nursery, Read Gardens, the most popular autumn crops to plant in Florida are:
- Beets
- Broccoli
- Cabbage
- Carrots
- Cauliflower
- Collards
- Lettuce
- Onions
- English peas
- Radish
- Spinach
- Turnips
Time & Place
These plants might be well-suited for Florida, but they are not without their limits. Each one has their own unique scheduling period, with guidelines that range from when to plant to how long you have to harvest. The months in which you can plant certain veggies might also depend on what region you’re gardening in.
For example: cabbage. The University of Florida’s 2021 publication, titled Florida Vegetable Gardening Guide, notes that in Northern Florida, cabbages can be planted anywhere between August all the way to March. In Central and Southern Florida, however, the time frame is a bit smaller. The best times for cabbage planting in these areas are between the months of September and February for Central Florida, and September through January for Southern Florida. Amanda Rose Newton from Rockledge Gardens says that timing seed starting with care is a necessity: “This timing allows your seedlings to establish before the cooler weather sets in but avoids the intense heat of midsummer.”
Find the full list of vegetable guidelines here.
Start Indoors
Rockledge Gardens also suggests that, due to Florida’s warmer fall climate, starting seeds indoors is beneficial because it gives the gardener better control over heat and humidity. After the weather cools, transplant the seeds to your outdoor garden.
Seeds can get a head start indoors through a process called germination. Essentially, germination is like an incubation period for seeds so that they have the best chance of survival out in the garden. There are two ways to germinate seeds. Some seeds need more light, while others do best buried in soil. For seeds that need a good bit of sun, you can either use a germination tray or paper towel, or you can simply press the seeds into a container of soil without covering it completely. After a few days of sun and soaking, the seeds begin to sprout and can be moved outdoors.
Find a step-by-step guide to germination here.