In the last post of what to do with your fall & winter garden, you uncovered some super simple ways to add food crops to your garden to harvest in the fall.
Now, let’s take this a step further and see how to use your garden to grow food to either eat over winter, or eat as soon as it gets a touch warmer is very early spring.
For many years, I didn’t grow anything outdoors in fall and winter. I have found this to be pretty normal.
Then I got excited about the possibility of all the fantastic crops I could grow. Through years of trying different stuff, seeing what would grow without cover here in zone 7a. I have been amazed by the bounty, I got hooked.
You enjoy bounty from your garden year round by growing food in fall and winter.
Some of the crops you put in for the fall, could over winter, even with no protection in many parts of the country.
Examples are cabbage, kale and collards. Here are some cold tolerance temps:
- Cabbage and brussels sprouts tolerate 24 – 12 degrees F, (-4 to -11 C) depending upon variety.
- Russian kales and some lettuces can also take it to 15F (-9.5C).
- Many carrots and most leeks are fine down to 12F (-11C)
- Broccoli 26 degrees F (-3C)
Winter Growing Tip 2: Add a simple, low-cost hoop house.
These easy to build structures can provide a bed that little bit of extra heat to overwinter allot more including more root veggies, lettuce varieties, spinach, dill, cilantro and chervil.
You also get more robust chard and arugula. Growing crops in hoop houses simply give you more options.
Winter Growing Tip 3: Grow garlic. Garlic is pretty darn simple to grow. As long as the bed has loose well drained soil, is kept week free and mulched, you are good!
Plant your cloves in fall to harvest next summer.
If you grow hardneck varieties, you’ll get to harvest garlic scapes in the spring too. Super cool!
Remember: You enjoy bounty from your garden year round by growing food in fall and winter. – Debby