Innovating Organic Gardening

Why Fall Container Gardening Rocks

🍂Fall is not the end of gardening season—it’s a fresh beginning!

Whether you’re short on space or just want a more manageable garden, container gardening lets you grow where you are.

Discover how easy and rewarding it is to grow your own food in containers this fall.

🥬🥕Leafy greens and root crops and happy in cool temperatures. They get less bug pressure which means easier maintenance for you.

Growing in containers give you control over soil, sunlight, and watering, making it easier to grow successfully.

Best Veggies to Grow in Fall Containers

As I often am heard saying, you can grow anything in a container, it simply depends on matching the size container with what you want to grow. We’ll get to that in a bit, first –

👉Let’s focus on some top-performing crops for fall that thrive in containers:

Lettuce

Lettuce can be started indoors in summer for larger transplants or direct seeded once temps cool down a bit.

Spinach

Direct seed spinach as it doesn’t like to be transplanted. All the seed packets say this.

I have found, when I tested starting spinach in trays, that the germination rate was pretty horrid.  I wasted too much seed trying as an experiment – so don’t waste your seed, learn from my test.

Radishes

As with all root crops, Direct seed these once the weather begins to cool down. Succession plant them every two weeks for continuous harvest.

Kale

If you direct seed, you’ll end up with baby kale, although you can leave some plants to grow quickly the following spring when temps begin to warm.

This is because kale is cold hardy and can overwinter in all but the coldest planting zones without protection.😃

Chard

When my friend was growing up and times were hard at the restaurant, his father would substitute chard for spinach in various dishes, and apparently none of his patrons could ever tell the difference.

A cool thing about growing chard is that you can get vibrant colors.  It is also biennial, so will last in your garden for two years.📅

Turnips

You can seed them close together and harvest the first ones as baby turnips for snacks.  This will give the remaining ones space to get bigger.  I tend to get three harvests from one planting by continuing to harvest and leaving space for others to get bigger.

Turnip leaves are great for soups or stock.🍲

Arugula

As it gets big, harvest part of it to eat and leave room for more plants to grow bigger. Choose short days-to-maturity varieties. 🥬

Carrots

Make sure your pot is deeper than the mature carrot size is listed on be on the seed packet.

For example, A Yaya carrot is about 6” long, so you’ll want a container that is a minimum 10” deep to grow that variety.

❄️Carrots are pretty darn cold hardy, being fine as low as 18°F and can withstand some frost, so they are great to harvest as it gets colder.

Like with radishes, succession plant for a continuous harvest.

Cilantro

Cilantro is a cool season herb I always direct seed in the fall.  Seed it liberally in a container as small as 8” for some yummy fall salsa.

Choosing Varieties for Your Fall Container Garden

One way to start is by choosing any of your favorite varieties. 😊

If you are new to fall gardening, or want to try something different, seed catalogs give you clues to help narrow your choices.

👀Look for words like “compact”, “grows in a small space” or “great for containers”.

A variety that is listed to grow quickly is also helpful. Look for shorter days to maturity varieties.

To clarify why, as the sunlight wanes, it signals plants to grow slower, so add a couple of weeks to the days to maturity when planting in fall.

❄️Cold hardy varieties are also great because they will give you some peace of mind if you get a snap cold spell or earlier than expected frost.

Setting Up for Fall Container Garden Success

Container Size & Shape

First, choose the right containers for what you want to grow.

To determine this, think of the size of the fully grown roots. That is how far apart they will be at their largest. You may be harvesting baby ones, but you want enough space to enjoy a good harvest.  

🥬For leaf crops, the larger the container, the more bountiful harvest you will get.  If you have large square or rectangle containers, you can more easily grow root crops and leaf crops in the same container because you have corners to tuck in more plants.

☑️A high-quality organic potting mix is essential. Using one that includes mycorrhizae will give your roots a major boost.

The bigger the roots, the bigger the plant, and hence, the bigger the harvest.

The Sun/Shade Consideration

Remember – we are talking about plants that prefer it cool or cold.

If you are planting your cool season crops when it is still hot outside, placing your containers in the shade will make your plants happier.  

One of the great things about growing in containers is they are mobile.  Even if you are growing on a balcony, you can still move the containers to give them more or less sun.  As it gets cooler, move your containers into a sunnier location.

Watering

Containers dry out faster than in-ground gardens, so check your containers every day to be sure the soil is moist.

If you will be traveling, you can get a drip system on a timer to ensure your garden stays watered. Just be sure to either buy a timer that can withstand a freeze or bring it in before freezing temperatures break it.

If you are putting in transplants, a layer of straw mulch will help keep moisture in and protect not only your soil, but also the roots of your plants.

Your Fall Garden Can Start Today!

You don’t need a big backyard or raised beds to grow fresh, organic food this fall.

With a few containers, the right crops, and a bit of know-how, you’ll be harvesting healthy, homegrown veggies long after summer ends.

Want to Grow Even More? 🌱

Ready to plan your full fall and winter garden (not just containers)?
🎁 Get my FREE Fall & Winter Garden Checklist!
It’ll walk you through all the steps to keep it growing an abundance —even as the weather cools.