Rockwall, TX (August 14, 2025) – Have you wanted to try vegetable gardening? If so, you might be thinking, “It’s August… it’s too late AND too hot for a garden this year.” Think again. Did you know that North Texas has two growing seasons; spring and autumn? Autumn in North Texas is an ideal time to try your hand, or at least your green thumb, at gardening. Late July and August are the perfect times to get things ready for the upcoming growing season.
A few key factors to consider, as you are readying your autumn garden, include:
Proper site selection
Space: in-ground or container
Soil preparation
Plants for the garden
Site selection is an important decision for gardeners regardless the season. Both the amount of space and amount of time available to tend the garden should be evaluated when choosing the garden’s size and site. Three additional factors should be examined with site selection: will the garden receive at least eight hours of direct sunlight/day, is the soil well-draining, and is water readily accessible.
Soil preparation for in-ground gardens includes removing any vegetation from the spring growing season or, with new garden sites, removing any grass and weeds. Turning the garden area’s soil to a depth of 10 to 12 inches is also recommended. Obtaining a soil test of your garden area, if one has not been obtained in the last 2 years, will provide useful data for making your decision about adding ammonium sulfate, slow-release fertilizer or composted horse/cow manure. After mixing the chosen fertilizer into the soil, the next step is to thoroughly water the entire garden. Garden soil with proper moisture content, as evidenced by the soil crumbling when pushed through your fingers, is ready for planting.
Both novice and experienced gardeners find that growing vegetables in containers has noteworthy benefits. Container gardening is a minimal space approach avoiding diseases and pests found in the ground, eliminating drainage problems with proper containers, and reducing the days from planting to production due to container’s elevated root zone. Container garden yields/plant can equal those of in-ground gardens. Other benefits of container gardening include comfortable height for tending the plants, ability to move the container, depending on its size, to take advantage of the changing seasonal sunlight exposure and/or reduce the impact of an early frost.
Soil preparation for container gardens is usually much easier than for in-ground gardens. Start with fresh growing media, either soilless or with soil. Soilless mixtures can be made or purchased. These are free of disease and weed seeds, hold moisture and nutrients, drain well and are lightweight. Soil mixes are made up of sphagnum peat moss or compost, composted cow manure, pasteurized soil and perlite or vermiculite.
Considerations when deciding what to plant in your autumn garden include: average first frost date (for Rockwall County November 15-17), length of time from planting to harvest, planting from seeds or transplants, and tolerance of frost. Plants susceptible to frost will be killed or damaged with temperature of 32 F. Susceptible plants can be protected from frost by moving them to an enclosed, protected area or by covering with frost cloth. The table below provides information that will help in planting decisions.
More options for your autumn vegetable garden can be found in the Texas A&M MG Vegetable Planting Guide. Getting started now can provide an autumn garden full of delicious vegetables to enjoy into winter.
https://txmg.org/rockwall/files/MG-Vegetable-Planting-Guide_2024.pdf
https://cdn-de.agrilife.org/extension/departments/hort/hort-pu-090/publications/files/Vegetable-gardening-in-containers.pdf
https://ccmgatx.org/media/1318/vegetables-for-the-fall-garden-growing-tips.pdf
https://cdn-de.agrilife.org/extension/departments/hort/hort-pu-104/publications/files/easy-gardening-fertilizing-1.pdf
As you continue to explore fall gardening, don’t miss this upcoming lecture! Rockwall County Master Gardener Association will host author and horticulturist Chris Wiesinger on September 19th at Liberty Hall inside the Rockwall County Courthouse. Beginning at 10am, Chris will be sharing valuable horticultural knowledge on how to grow and care for perennial bulbs. These heirloom bulbs will bring years of floral beauty and timeless charm to your cut flower garden and landscape. You will learn what varieties will grow in our area, when to plant each one and how to care for them. Mr. Wiesinger was featured in a New York Times story that affectionately dubbed him “The Bulb Hunter” and Chris later used that as the title for his book. In 2013, he wrote “The Bulb Hunter” detailing his life as a bulb collector and farmer.
Tickets are now available for purchase at: https://txmg.org/rockwall/event/the-bulb-hunter-presentation/
Following the program, will be a catered lunch from The Pie Queen herself, Tara Royer Steele, from Royer’s Pie Haven in Round Top, TX –– where dreams do come true. Tara is the founder of Gather and Grace and author of “Keep Your Fork, There’s Pie!” as seen on the Today Show with Hoda and Jenna.
By Virginia Davis, Rockwall County Extension Master Gardener. Photo by Lisa Johnson
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