September Garden Crops

Fall is just around the corner, but that doesn't mean the gardening season is over.  There are plenty of cool weather garden crops that can be planted right now.  Here, in the Mid-Ohio Valley, we are on the border between hardiness zones 6 and 7.  We're in the optimal zone for growing the widest range garden crops in the US! 

If you go farther north you're limited by a shorter garden season, and if you go south, the temperatures get too hot during the summer for crops that require cooler temperatures.  So right now we can sow crops that our neighbors in the northeast and northern Midwestern states would normally be planting as their main summer crops.

Leaf lettuce, snow peas, kale, radishes, turnips, and many other can be sown directly in the garden right now for a harvest this fall.  Other crops like cabbage, broccoli, and others can be grown from transplants.  If you incorporate season extending techniques like row covers, cold frames, etc. you can sow many of these crops later into the fall.

In closing, there are also a number of other garden cleanup tasks that can be done right now.  Removing summer crops like corn stalks and sowing a cover crop is a great option.  Turnips actually make a great cover option for the garden as the seeds can be sown by broadcasting them over a tilled area.  Also, raised garden beds can be prepared for winter by covering them with a layer of mulch or leaves (later in the fall).  Finally, fall is the perfect time to test your garden's soil and apply lime, if needed, to adjust the pH.  Pumpkin spice season might be here, but it's not time to hang up your garden tools just yet.