What To Do With Vegetable Garden In Fall

Summer is almost over (nooooo!), but that doesn't mean it's too late to have a backyard garden full of delicious, fresh veggies. Some garden vegetables actually thrive in the cooler fall weather, and now is the perfect time to plant them. Plus, some of us even prefer fall gardening, which promises a rainbow of homegrown goodness with lower humidity, fewer bugs, and WAY less melting-in-the-midsummer-heat sweat and sunburn. Win-win! Get ready to get your hands dirty with these hearty vegetables to plant in fall.

Roasted brussels sprouts grace many a Thanksgiving table.

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The best vegetables to plant in fall

Cruciferous vegetables—like broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, and cabbage—love the cooler temperatures of autumn. Hardy greens like arugula, kale, spinach, and chard, and root veggies like carrots, radishes, and beets, also grow well in the fall, so you have a big choice of salad ingredients even after pool-float season comes to an end. (There's a reason many of these veggies are Thanksgiving classics—it's when they're at their peaks!)

Colorful radishes grow quickly in cool fall soil.

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When to plant vegetables in fall

Check the long-term weather forecast in your area to make sure you're planting well before the first frost. (The Farmer's Almanac has a frost-date feature on its website that can tell when it will be for your zip code!) But many of these vegetables actually taste sweeter if you wait until after a frost to harvest them: The cold can concentrate their sugars. Some things grow fairly quickly from seed, like radishes, which thrive in cool soil and can be ready to harvest just weeks after planting a seed—in fact, you can plant several rounds of radishes a week or two apart, so that when you pick one salad's worth there's another round waiting in the wings! (Or, you know, in the soil.)

For slower growers, like brussels sprouts, it might be smart to start with pre-grown seedlings. If you're not sure, check with your local nursery to see what will do well in your area. And whatever you make with your veggie haul, be sure to take pictures so you can remember the goodness—winter is coming, like it or not.

Need some inspiration? Watch designer Bunny Williams plant her perfect vegetable garden!

Vegetable Seeds for Fall Planting

Seeds of Change Certified Organic Cherry Radishes

Seeds of Change Certified Organic Broccoli

Seeds of Change Certified Organic Carrots

Seeds of Change Certified Organic Dinosaur Kale

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Michele Petry Deputy Managing Editor Michele Petry is the Deputy Managing Editor of House Beautiful; she has edited home, lifestyle, food, and fashion content for magazines including Elle Decor, Food & Wine, and Marie Claire.

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