Fall & Winter Gardening

Did you know that you can grow veggies and herbs in the fall and even the winter in South Carolina? Gardening during the cool season involves different plants and different strategies than summer gardening. Many leafy greens and root crops grow best in cooler weather, and the frost can even change the flavor of certain crops. Let's take a look at some of the benefits of cool-season gardening, what crops we can grow, and different cool-weather strategies:

What are some of the benefits for gardening during the fall or winter in South Carolina (and similar climates)?

Many crops prefer cooler weather and many require winter to complete their life cycle.
No sweating under the intense South Carolina summer heat!
Plants generally require less water during the winter, partially because they're dormant and partially because there is less evaporation during cooler weather. If we have a wet winter anyway, then winter gardens require a lot less supplemental water.
If the pantry looks empty at the end of summer, fall gardens can be a quick way to stockpile for the winter.

Sicilian rocket (arugula) seedlings

What kinds of types of crops can you grow during the fall or winter?

Crops that tend to bolt (produce flowers and end their life cycle) in the summer heat
Leafy crops whose flavor is changed by a frost
Root crops that we want to stock up on for the winter
Biennial crops that require winter to complete their life cycle
Trees, shrubs, and perennials that can be "watered in" by our wet falls, grow strong root systems during the winter, and emerge ready to thrive before summer heat sets in
Native plants and other perennial seeds that prefer cold stratification to germinate

Arugula bolting

Bolting is when a crop flowers and sets seed and signals the end of an annual or biennial crop's life cycle. Gardeners want crops to flower when the part we harvest and eat is the plant's fruit or seeds. Summer crops like tomatoes, peppers, watermelon, sesame, and corn all require flowering in order to get the part of the plant we desire. But for a lot of fall crops, the part of the plant we eat is the leaf, so we want those crops to focus their energy on healthy leaf production, not flowering and seed setting (which require a lot of energy). Bolting occurs as a natural part of a plant's life cycle but can also be brought on early when a plant is stressed. Heat, drought, or poor soil, for example, can trigger many plants to bolt; they realize they may not survive, so they focus their energy on producing seed to ensure the next generation can survive. Crops that tend to bolt during hot weather include arugula, lettuce, spinach, herbs like cilantro or rashad (cress), and plants in the family Brassicaceae such as bok choy, broccoli, broccoli rabe, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, collard greens, kale, kohlrabi, mustard greens, rutabaga, and turnips. Planting these leaf crops in the fall (and again in very early spring) can help gardeners get a good harvest without summer's heat causing them to bolt.

For many of those same crops, growing through a frost will change their flavor. Gardeners that tend to find collard greens or kale too bitter can wait until after a frost to harvest: the frost sweetens the leaves. Regardless, planting greens in fall gives gardeners the opportunity for an autumn, pre-frost harvest and another spring, post-frost harvest. Harvesting frequently can help encourage regrowth, but don't take more than about 40% of the plant: it still needs to photosynthesize to have the energy for regrowth! Growth slows or stops during the coldest part of winter but will continue again in the spring.

The end of summer and early fall can present a good opportunity to stock up on root crops that store well through the winter. This was a strategy many of our ancestors employed (hence, the root cellar). So-called "storage radishes" like daikon (used for kimchi and bánh mì) and watermelon radish, parsnips, and carrots (which sweeten with cooler temperatures) can be planted in fall (direct sowing is recommended over transplanting to avoid damage to the roots) and often left in the ground to harvest as needed. In this case, the soil itself is the root cellar! Insulate the soil with mulch to provide some temperature protection, and if moles or a hard freeze are concerns, go ahead and harvest these roots store indoors.

Biennials are plants that require two years to complete their life cycles (as opposed to annuals, which complete their life cycle in a single growing season). As mentioned above, for many crops, gardeners want to prolong the harvest season and prevent bolting, but for some crops, flowering is required for harvest. Broccoli and cauliflower, for example, are actually immature flowers. The head is a bunch of flowers that have not fully matured and opened yet. The trick is providing enough cool temperatures, water, and nutrients so that the heads form fully without flowering fully. Planting in the fall and letting them grow through winter is one strategy to encourage heading in spring ahead of the hot temperatures that cause premature flowering. If the part of the plant we want to harvest is the seed, we also must allow the plant to complete its life cycle. Though generally classified as an annual, cilantro (or coriander) grows best here in cool weather. Harvest the greens (known as cilantro) through the fall and spring, and, once the plant bolts, wait until the seeds (known as coriander) appear to harvest. Garlic and onions are also planted in mid to late fall, grow throughout the winter, and are harvested in late spring to early summer. Because of the planting and harvesting times, we treat these crops as biennials, though most are perennials that will continue to regrow leaves if the bulbs are not harvested.

Garlic growing in the snow

Fall can be an excellent time to plant trees, shrubs, and perennial plants. While spring is often thought of as the planting time, planting these long-lasting plants in the fall gives them plenty of time to get used to their new environment before the heat of summer. We also tend to have wet falls and winters here, which means gardeners can spend less time watering their new plantings when nature does that task for us!

Finally, for gardeners that like growing from seed, most native perennial plants and many non-native perennial herbs and flowers have higher germination rates when they go through a process called cold stratification. Cold stratification is the process of exposing seeds to both cold and moist conditions. Gardeners can replicate these conditions through a variety of methods often involving refrigeration, but nature provides this service naturally through winter. Think about it: if plants flower and set seed in the fall naturally, then those seeds will fall, be carried by the wind, or eaten by an animal and consequently planted (via the digestive system) shortly thereafter. If that seed lands in good soil, the seed goes through the process of cold stratification naturally when the ground freezes. After the ground thaws, the seed "wakes up" and germinates in the spring. This is a very rudimentary explanation of a very complex process that differs by species, but, for gardeners, the takeaway is that planting perennial seeds in good soil in the fall lets nature do much of the work for you. Just wait for the seedlings to emerge in spring.

Fall-planted anise hyssop emerging in early spring

Fall and winter gardening do require different strategies compared to spring and summer gardening. Even plants that prefer cooler temperature need to be protected from extreme cold, which besides the air temperature, can be exacerbated by high winds or precipitation. To help plants survive cooler temperatures, utilize these strategies:

Mulch: Apply a layer of mulch to keep the plants' roots warmer. Consider using leaves dropped from nearby trees (shred them, or break them up). Keeping leaves on your property provides crucial habitat for hibernating native pollinators. If using wood as mulch, avoid dyed options; go for natural wood. If you have access to hay or straw that has not been treated with herbicides or pesticides, those can be good mulch options as well.
Water: Keep your plants well watered, but as temperatures cool and the sun is out less, the soil will take much longer to dry out than during the summer, so adjust watering frequency accordingly, especially when it rains. Though evaporation occurs less without the heat, strong, dry winds can cause topsoil to dry quickly, so water deeply. If a hard freeze is predicted, water before the freeze since roots cannot take up water from frozen ground. (Plants in the ground often get enough water from rain.)

Cilantro/coriander growing under leaf mulch

Insulate: Protect your plants from cold air temperatures with blankets, sheets, or frost cover. If growing in containers or raised beds, cooler temperatures can seep through the sides into the soil, so when temperatures get really low, wrap your containers in blankets and/or crowd them together up against your house (brick holds heat). Some more cold-sensitive plants may require insulation of their leaves or stems during extreme weather. If we experience a late spring frost, after many dormant plants begin to sprout new growth, protect that vulnerable new growth with frost cover or old sheets.
Cover: Extend the season by placing floating row cover or using low tunnels or cold frames to protect tender greens from early frosts. Gardening books and websites have many DIY or low-cost ideas.

Dinosaur (Lacinato) kale seedling

Gardening during the fall and winter doesn't have to be as daunting as it seems. It's an opportunity to grow different crops, experience new flavors, and keep the garden fun going year-round. For more information and crop-specific information, I highly recommend picking up a copy of Grow Great Vegetables in South Carolina by Ira Wallace. Mama Ira is a legendary gardener, seedkeeper, and teacher, and she wrote state-specific guides for South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, and Virginia as well as a general guide for gardening in the Southeast. Much of my knowledge of cool-season gardening came from her book.

I hope you will consider purchasing fall and winter plant starts from Honky Tonk Farms & Apothecary's plant nursery as well.

Contact

Shop