I know it’s only August, but I’m wondering what kind of vegetables would make a nice autumn and winter harvest. I know my mom always like to grow Chinese mustard, garlic, onion, and cilantro during the cold season.
The folks at Seeds of Change refer to this as “Four Season Growing“.
Fresh Broccoli Raab. Photo from Seeds of Change -“Tender young leaves and stems form small florets with a mild flavor reminiscent of broccoli and turnip.”
They recommend these varieties as they are cold-hardy. Some of the list include: Arugula, Beetberry, Broccoli Raab, Chicory, Cress, Endive, Huazontle, Komatsuna, Mesclun Salad Mix, Mesclun Spicy Salad Mix, Mustard Greens, Orach, Purslane .
I’ve haven’t really heard of most of these names. But Broccoli Raab is my favorite. It’s really tasty in sautes or slightly steam and eaten with a spicy sauce.
Another way to plant is by succession planting. They provide continuous harvest when sown successively, one to three weeks apart. Some of the vegetables include Spinach, Chinese Cabbage, Arugula, Broccoli, Radishes, and Lettuce. I may try to collect some seeds and see if my mom would try to grow this in her garden. Chard is a crop where successive plantings are not necessary because you can continue to harvest from the same plant throughout the season.
Small leaves of the Tatsoi Spoon Mustard. Photo also from Seeds of Change. More good crops for overwintering: Beets, Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts, Carrots, Cauliflower, Chard, Garlic, Kale, Onions, Rutabagas, Spinach, Turnips.
The best beets I’ve had were from my mom’s garden. They looked just like this one pictured here. It’s hard to describe the taste, but it just tasted fresh and more sweet. They are one root vegetable that can be grown in all seasons. Photo from Simply in Season.
Seeds of Change has seed packets they call “Asian Greens Seed Collection”. They describe it best by noting, “Asian Greens add a spicy tangy flavor to fresh salads, sautees, and stir-fries, and are extremely nutritious, providing necessary protein and bioflavenoids such as riboflavin, thiamin, and magnesium.”
For further reading and gardening tips, please check out Fall Gardens: Harvest Well Into Winter by the gardeners of Seeds of Change here.
10:53 pm on August 6th, 2009
Cambree, thanks for this post, it’s good timing, and will come in handy.
Broccoli Raab is also my favorite, I also like it steam with hot sauce. I’ve not decided for sure what I want to plant, most of my plants are now mature, but still produce fruits such as the Thai eggplants, chili peppers and cherry tomatoes, so I might leave them as is and need to expand my area out a bit more.
1:56 am on August 8th, 2009
You have a good list of veggies there… thai eggplants are my favorite. My mom grows these very small eggplants, they taste pretty good. They are the size of cherry tomatoes.
Maybe after your last summer harvest you can plan on the winter veggies. Around here, it doesn’t get too cold until late September. I think that is when my mom starts to clear out her garden too. I feel a bit sad, but then blooming Chrysanthemums usually cheer me up.