By JoAnne Skelly — It seems odd to be thinking about planting cool season crops in the midst of a heat wave. However, if you would like to make your vegetable harvest last longer into the fall, and possibly into early winter, you may want to think about late season planting. Many plants will thrive in the cooler fall months.
JoAnne Skelly
Fall vegetables can be directly seeded from mid-August on. These include (with low temperature tolerances): arugula (light freeze), beets (high 20s), broccoli (light freeze), Brussel sprouts (down to 20 degrees), carrots (light freeze), cauliflower (light freeze), Chinese cabbage (mid 20s), chives (cold tolerant and perennial), collards (down to 20), endive (mid 20s), green onions (high 20s), kale (down to 20), lettuces (light freeze to 16 degrees depending on variety with interior hearts very tolerant), radishes (down to 26), parsley (10 degrees with mulch, biennial – flowering in second year), peas (high 20s), spinach (light freeze), and Swiss chard (light freeze). Choose fast-growing vegetables such as 25 day maturing radishes, or 30 to 45 day maturing lettuces and even turnips, which can mature in 60 days (tolerant of light freezes or colder temperatures with mulch). Also look for crops that will tolerate cold temperatures down to freezing or slightly below.
Before sowing new crops, turn the soil over and mix in a balanced fertilizer. This will replace what earlier crops used. Also remove old plant debris, including roots.
There are a few ways to protect crops as the cold temperatures hit. Place six inches of mulch around plants. Put row covers or large paper bags over veggies. Or put frames over plants and cover them with burlap, blankets or frost cloth. Keep any materials from touching the plants because they conduct the cold to the plant surfaces. Use stakes, posts, PVC pipe, whatever you can think of, to keep the coverings from touching. Be sure to remove the covers the next day when temperatures rise above freezing. Avoid plastic because it traps moisture and cold. Covering once temperatures drop below 28 degrees F no longer prevents damage.
To clarify terms: frost occurs when there are ice crystals on leaf surfaces and can happen when temperatures are above freezing. They usually cause minor damage. Frost advisories are issued when low temperatures will be between 33-36 degrees. A freeze causes more damage and happens when the air temperature drops below 32 degrees. A light freeze is when the temperature is 29-32 degrees for a few hours. A hard freeze occurs when the temperature drops below 28 degrees for at least 4 consecutive hours. For more information see link here.
— JoAnne Skelly is an Associate Professor and Extension Educator, Emerita, University of Nevada Cooperative Extension. She can be reached at skellyj@unr.edu.
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