A Family With Many Faces

As a triplet myself, I’ve always thought of my family as pretty big. But it’s nothing compared to this one. You may know the brassica family as just cabbages and cauliflowers, yet the Brassicaceae clan is much larger than most people imagine. It has around 370 genera and over 4,000 species, making it one of the most important plant families in both our gardens and our kitchens.

Some members include:

• Kale and collards
• Broccoli and cauliflower
• Brussels sprouts
• Kohlrabi
• Radishes and turnips
• Bokchoy, mizuna, arugula (yes really!), mustard greens

So, amazingly, many of these vegetables all come from one of the 4,000 species: Brassica Oleracea. They are carefully bred of centuries to emphasize different parts of the plant. Leaves, stems, buds, flowers, roots, they are all transformed into unique crops, yet bound by family ties.

Why Autumn is Their Season

Brassicas thrive when the air is cool and crisp. They dislike the stress of high summer heat, but as soon as autumn rolls in, they grow strong and sweet.

In fact, many brassicas taste even better after the first frost! Why, you ask? Here’s the cool part: cold weather triggers chemical changes that turn starches into sugars, making kale sweeter and Brussels sprouts less bitter. So instead of bundling up in warmer clothes like we do, they literally change their chemistry. Plants are way cooler than us (kidding… kinda).

In short, where summer crops retreat, brassicas shine. They are the bridge between seasons, carrying us from the abundance of late summer into the steady rhythm of winter harvests.

Fun Facts to Share Around the Dinner Table

• The brassica family includes crops, herbs and even ornamentals!

• • Canola oil (a staple cooking oil worldwide) comes from a brassica too: Brassica napus.

  • • Brassicas are also called “crucifers” because their four-petaled flowers look like a cross.
• This fam is a nutritional powerhouse! They are packed with vitamins C, K and folates. Plus compounds called glucosinolates that give them their characteristic mustardy bite. And, and, and this is also the compound that protect the plant from pests (and ironically, they’re also linked to health benefits for us)! You should totally flex this glucosinolates-fact at dinner.
• Broccoli and cauliflower are essentially the same plant, just bred for different flower structure.

Caring for Brassicas in Your Garden

Soil & Feeding

• Brassicas are hungry plants! Give them fertile, well-drained soil enriched with compost.
• They thrive with steady moisture and benefit from a balanced organic fertiliser.

Planting Time

• Late summer is perfect for sowing fast growers like arugula, mustard and radishes for autumn salads.
• Kale, cabbages and brussels sprouts can be transplanted now and will be ready to harvest as autumn deepens.

Frost is a Friend

• Don’t fear the cold, frost improves the flavor! With a little protection (row covers, mulch) many brassicas will carry you right into winter.

Pest and Protection

Okay, this is an important one. Brassicas are vulnerable to diseases. The most serious is clubroot, a soilborne parasite that causes swollen roots and stunted growth. Once present, it can survive in the soil for up to 20 years! Because all members of the brassica family are susceptible, it’s very important to rotate them as a group.

Rotation helps because it:

• Breaks pest and disease cycles
• Lets the soil recover nutrients
• Keeps plants healthier and yields stronger

A Simple 4-Year Rotation Plan

Here’s a beginner-friendly rotation cycle you could use:

Year 1 -> Brassicas (so your cabbage, kale, broccoli, etc.)

Year 2 -> Legumes (peas, beans): add nitrogen to soil

Year 3 -> Roots & Alliums (Carrots, beets, onions, garlic)

Year 4 -> Fruiting crops (tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, squash)

Then back to year 1 with brassicas. The key: Don’t plant brassicas in the same soil two years in a row.

Using Planter’s Growing Guide

To make rotation simple, use the Planter app’s growing guide:

• Each crop is tagged with its plant family, so you know which ones count as brassicas.
• Planting calendars help you plan sowing and transplanting at the right time.
• Care tips keep track of spacing, feeding and watering needs. By marking wat you’ve planted in each bed, you can easily see when and where to rate crops next season.

When summer crops fade, brassicas take over. They’re tough, nutritious, and often taste best in the cool of autumn. By giving them fertile soil, protection from pests, and a good crop rotation, they’ll reward you with months of fresh harvests.

Happy gardening!

It’s mid-July, and the breeze here in the mountains feels like a warm hug. Most folks are busy harvesting courgettes the size of baguettes and, no doubt, cursing their once-again runaway mint. I’m standing in my garden with a fresh cup of (yes, mint) tea and a question: What do I want to eat in the fall?

Because while summer is in full swing, this is actually the secret season to sow again. Gardening either keeps you fully in the moment or shoots your brain a few months into the future. That’s part of the deal, I guess. Especially up here at 900 meters altitude (zone 6-ish), where autumn comes with a whisper… and then a frost. No time in between.

So I thought I’d take you along. Let’s chat about what you can still plant now, and which crops are worth your time to make sure there’s still some harvest joy in the fall.

Let’s Talk About Frost, Baby

As we tiptoe toward fall, it’s a great time to start plotting your autumn garden. For an overview of the types of crops that are generally best suited for a fall garden, and how Planter can help you to double check the timing, have a read of the article: Don’t Forget Your Fall Garden.

One of my favorite newer(ish) Planter features? In the settings tab, Planter shows a countdown to your first expected fall frost, like a tiny ticking clock for gardeners. Super useful for figuring out what you can still grow in time… and also mildly panic-inducing (in the best way). Here’s mine:

My Fall Planting Picks

Ideally, I want to plant everything, have maximum diversity, and eat 23 different crunchy things in my salad bowls. But sometimes, less really is more. Expanding gradually keeps gardening fun and avoids unnecessary stress on both your soil and your (possibly receding) hairline.

With the internet offering a bazillion planting guides (plus whatever gardening books you’ve got lying around), there’s no shortage of info. For this round, I’m keeping it simple and using the Planter app to guide my choices. It already knows my local frost dates, and I love that you can filter for things like frost-tolerant crops or perennials. The Growing Calendar shows which crops you can still plant, and how much time you’ve got left to do it.

So, without further rambling… 

Here are some of the fast-growing cool-season crops I’ve chosen for an abundant fall harvest in the mountains!

1. Mâche (Lamb’s Lettuce). The absolute fall classic in Germany. To not plant it? Unthinkable.

2. Kohlrabi (early varieties). Great raw or marinated as veggie “kebab.”

3. Spinach. Always good. Especially the cold-hardy types.

4. Cilantro. Yes, even now! It handles light frost just fine.

5. Kale. Might be a bit late, but I’m giving it a go for baby leaves (and planning a perennial kale tree next year!).

6. Mustard greens. Spicy when young, flavorful when cooked.

7. Carrots. Early varieties still make it if you plant now.

8. Radishes. Because color + crunch = salad joy.

9. Bok Choy. Quick to grow, great for stir-fries.

10. Wasabi Arugula. Want to keep it mild? Use young baby leaves. Want it spicier? Let the leaves get bigger or use the flower buds, they’re often even punchier.

A few slow-burners I’m adding anyway.  These won’t feed me this year, but they’re future-you gold:

• Black salsify (Scorzonera ‘Duplex’). Beautiful, weird, delicious root native to Europe.
• Garlic. Usually planted in mid-to-late October, but I might prep beds now and sneak in a little green garlic (early-harvested cloves).
• Chives. Super hardy, great for pollinators, and the purple flowers are edible too.
• Echinacea (Coneflower). Slow to establish, but gorgeous and medicinal.
• Rhubarb. If you’re feeling bold and patient (it’s worth it). 

What to Keep in Mind When Planting Now

1. Choose fast-growing or frost-tolerant crops Look for varieties that mature in 60 days or less, or that can handle light frost.
2. Sow directly in the soil Depending on where you live, it might too late for longer-growing transplants unless you’ve already got them ready. To be safe, I’m going with direct sowing only.
3. Germination can be tricky in summer heat Sow in the evening, water well, and consider adding light shade over freshly seeded areas to keep the soil cool.
4. Keep watering consistent Seeds and young plants need steady moisture, especially during warm July days.
5. Don’t overdo it It’s easy to get excited (hello, seed hoarders), but keep it simple and realistic to avoid overwhelm. Think: joy, not stress.

So there you have it, one last hurrah for the garden before the frost moves in.

Go sow something. Go be smug in October. You’ve got this.

Spinach

Considering spinach is often harvested for its tender baby leaves, it’s amazing just how cold-hardy it is. Depending on the conditions, spinach can still be going strong with minimal frost protection and snow on the ground! With added protection, some cold-climate gardeners are even able to overwinter spinach for harvests right through winter and into the following spring. Spinach is also a super fast-growing crop that can be ready to harvest in as little as 35 days- so even if you don’t feel like using season extension techniques you can still get a solid fall crop of spinach. And as the weather cools down there is less risk of your spinach bolting, meaning you can get a prolonged harvest if you only pick the outermost leaves. 

Kale

Kale is about as cold-hardy as plants come, which makes it a potential candidate for early fall sowing. That being said, like most every plant kale’s growth will slow to almost a standstill once the temperatures approach freezing. To get a fall (and potentially winter!) harvest of kale you’ll need at least 55 days for the plants to reach maturity. If you don’t have that long left in your growing season, you still have options to grow kale. You can look for pre-started kale transplants at your local garden center (although they might be hard to come by), or you can seed intensively and harvest baby kale leaves as a delicious delicacy!

Radishes

Radishes are a classic crop for fall planting as they grow so quickly and are also quite cold-hardy. Radishes can reach maturity in as little as 25 days, meaning you can keep on planting successions of radishes almost right to the bitter end of your growing season. Radishes grown in cooler, wetter weather can be less spicy than their summer-grown counterparts so if you’re not a fan of the typical radish bite you might like fall (and spring) grown radishes. If your radishes do not bulb up as your first frost date approaches you can also harvest them for their green tops, which can be cooked up in stir-fries and soups. If you’re after the radish greens you will want to pull your radishes before frost comes or otherwise use season extension techniques to protect them as the greens do tend to get droopy with the frost.

Lettuce

Lettuce is a semi-frost tolerant plant that grows at its best in cool-ish temperatures. If you grow loose-leaf lettuce as a cut-and-come-again crop, rather than aiming for a full-sized lettuce head, you will be able to harvest your lettuce much earlier. Ideally, look for lettuce varieties that are more cold-hardy and well-suited for late-season planting. While lettuce can handle a light frost, if a nighttime frost is in the forecast you may still want to temporarily cover your lettuce with row cover, plastic, bedsheets, or towels, as a preventative measure. Even if frost doesn’t take out the plant entirely, frost damage on the leaves can render them inedible.

Arugula

Arugula is a rather spicy green that may not appeal to everyone, but if you can handle its peppery punch it is a prime candidate for fall planting. Arugula can reach maturity in as little as 28 days and the seeds can germinate in cool soil. Like lettuce, arugula is semi-tolerant of frost- so you may want to err on the side of caution and cover it up if frost is in the forecast. Cut or pick just the outermost leaves of the arugula, leaving the growing crown intact, to keep the harvests going. Arugula is much less likely to bolt in the cooler weather, so you may be able to harvest it continuously until a freeze takes it out!

Bok choy

Bok choy, also known as pac choi or chinese cabbage, is a frost tolerant member of the brassica family that is a delicious addition in stir fries, soups, and noodle dishes. Some varieties of bok choy can be ready to harvest in as little as 30 days, but many can take 45-60 days– so be careful to select a variety that will be able to reach maturity in the remainder of your growing season. If your bok choy doesn’t quite reach full size by the time heavy frosts set in, you can still harvest it on the smaller side as ‘baby bok choy’.

Hakurei turnips

While the larger, standard grocery store turnips are typically slow-growing plants that take their time to mature, there are smaller ‘hakurei salad turnip’ varieties available that can be ready to harvest in as little as 35 days! Hakurei turnips are frost tolerant, and although the greens may take a beating with heavier frosts the roots will remain sweet, juicy, and crisp- just be sure to get them out of the ground before a hard freeze sets in. Or, like radish, if the roots don’t end up reaching full size you can at least use the tops to cook with. Hakurei turnips add nice variety to a late-season harvest that can often be mostly greens.

While the end of summer can be bittersweet, in the garden it’s the perfect time to get some new crops growing! Take advantage of the more comfortable temperatures to get outside and plant a fresh round of veggies for late-fall harvests!

The greens we’ll cover in this article should be seeded quite densely to be grown for salad greens (roughly 1.5’-2’ between plants)- this helps the leaves stay salad-sized and makes it easier to harvest them with a knife as cut-and-come-again greens. So long as you don’t entirely cut off the top growing crowns of the plants, you can keep harvesting the greens as they regrow until they finally bolt. If you’re particular about bug-bitten leaves (or if you have some especially hungry pests), be sure to cover your greens with insect netting to help keep the leaves intact.

Arugula

Also known as rocket or rucola, arugula is a delicate leafy green that packs a peppery punch. If you don’t mind salad with a kick you can use arugula as the sole green, but it also makes a great addition to mesclun mix where its spiciness is balanced out with lettuce and milder greens. Or, skip the salad and sprinkle it on top of homemade pizza or sandwiches for a gourmet touch! Arugula can tend to bolt easily so be sure to keep it well-watered to avoid drought stress, and consider sowing in regular successions to be able to continue harvesting throughout the season.

Mustard

Mustard packs a good amount of spice- similar to arugula but arguably a notch more intense, and with a flavor all its own. Mustard greens are not necessarily green- there are red varieties available such as ‘Red Giant‘ that add a pop of color as well as flavor. Mustard leaves have unique crispy-juicy stems and serrated or savoyed leaves that add a really interesting texture to salad mixes. Mustard can be a bit intense as a sole salad green but if you’re needing a change from salad entirely it’s also excellent in stir-fries and soups.

Tip: Mustard is listed under Herbs in Planter as it can also be grown for mustard seed

Baby kale

Kale is often grown for full-sized leaves that can be turned into kale chips, chopped salads, and green smoothies. But if you sow kale seeds densely and cut off the leaves while they are young and tender you have ‘baby kale’ which is a wonderful salad green. Baby kale has the same strong flavor that fully mature kale does, but the texture is much softer so the leaves are pleasant to eat whole in salads without needing to chop them down first. Also, if you cease cutting the baby kale leaves and thin out the plants, the remaining plants can grow into fully mature-sized kale so you can harvest larger leaves (kale doesn’t tend to bolt as easily as some of the other greens in the list).

Baby chard (and beet) greens

Chard and beets are related plants that have very similar greens. Chard is often grown for full-sized leaves, while beets are often grown for their sugary roots- but they can both be seeded densely and grown for salad greens. Like beet roots, beet greens (they can often be purple-red in color) have an ‘earthy’ undertone to their flavor that may not appeal to everyone. Chard has a more neutral spinach-like flavor and the colorful stems and bright-green leaves are visually striking. Both can add a nice depth of flavor and pop of color to a salad mix.

Endive/escarole

While endive and escarole can look like little lettuces, they are actually members of a unique chicory sub-group of plants (genus Cichorium). These greens are most commonly described as bitter- if you’re not a fan of bitter flavors they might not agree with you. Endive and escarole is typically blanched when growing- that is the growing stem is blocked from receiving sunlight to maintain a white color and a milder flavor. They can be used as the sole green in a salad, but the strong bitter flavor often needs to be balanced out by adding plenty of sweet, salty, and/or acidic ingredients. They can also be grilled first which adds a depth of flavor that works really well with the bitterness.

Bonus: Nasturtiums

Nasturtiums are often added to edible gardens for their beautiful color and as companion plants that can attract pollinators and discourage pests. But did you know that all parts of the nasturtium plant are also edible? They have a mild peppery taste and they make for a stunningly beautiful salad with the flowers and the leaves combined together. Nasturtiums may look super-delicate, but they are surprisingly easy to grow in the garden! Direct-sow nasturtiums into any available nooks and crannies to add beauty and color to your garden and your salad plate!

Salads are a great way to enjoy garden veggies at their peak freshness! But if you start to get tired of the same old salad ingredients, don’t give up on eating salads entirely. Up your salad game instead by adding some of these unique and interesting greens to the mix!

Do all veggie plants need full sun?

For the most part, vegetable plants grow and produce best in full sun (at least 6 hours of direct sun per day). Veggie plants need ample sun to be able to photosynthesize and grow as quickly as possible- a lack of sun may not outright kill them but it can severely stunt their growth. But there are some plants that will still produce a respectable harvest in partial shade (4-6 hours of sun per day). Gardening successfully in part shade comes down to being selective about what you choose to grow and having realistic expectations about how much you’ll be able to harvest.

If your potential garden location is in near total shade and gets only a few hours of sun each day, you may want to skip down the Alternatives to gardening in part shade section of this article. While you can certainly have fun experimenting with growing edible plants in shade (you might even discover some non-traditional edible plants that grow well in shade), you’ll likely only be able to muster up a meager harvest.

Veggie plants to grow in part shade

Lettuce and leafy greens

Lettuce and other leafy greens such as spinach, chard, and arugula are star performers in the shade. Growing them in part shade can even have some benefits, as blazing summer sun can contribute to them bolting. To get the plants off to a good start you may want to consider starting them indoors then transplanting out to the shadier parts of your garden. It can be challenging to get lettuce to form full-sized heads in part-shade, but you can certainly harvest it as cut-and-come-again lettuce.

Green onions and chives

‘Bulbing onions’ require full sun to form their large, edible bulbs, however green onions and chives are excellent shady garden plants because they are primarily harvested for their slender, pungent greens. While they will produce best in full sun, you can tuck them into shady spots and still harvest enough to make the effort worthwhile. To learn more about growing these and other allium-family crops be sure to check out Grow Amazing Alliums.

Radishes

By now you might be noticing a theme with shady-garden plant picks: they tend to be green and leafy. Radishes can add a nice burst of color to an otherwise monotone shady salad garden. Radishes can still form nice-sized roots when grown in part shade- although it might take longer than usual for the bulbs to form. Be careful not to use too much high-nitrogen fertilizer where you plant radishes, as this will stimulate them to form lush leafy tops and tiny roots. If this does happen all is not lost- radish greens are edible too!

Beets

Like radishes, beets are another root crop that can be grown in partial shade. The roots of shade-grown beets will likely be smaller than their full-sun counterparts, but you can always roast them whole and just call them ultra-gourmet baby beets. Don’t leave beets in the ground for an excessively long time hoping that massive roots will form- they might just turn woody and tough instead. Beet greens are also totally delicious in salads or sauteed, so if you do find the bulbs are too diminutive the greens will not disappoint!

Brassicas (such as broccoli, cabbage, collards, kale)

Brassicas can be grown in part-shade locations- but they must receive at minimum 4-6 hours of direct sunlight per day. If your location has dappled sun throughout the day, you may want to avoid growing brassicas there. Because brassicas, like leafy greens, are prone to bolting under stress caused by heat and drought, growing them in shade may help to delay this. Patience is key as brassicas are already slow-growing crops and they will grow even more slowly in the shade. You likely will not be able to get super-sized heads to form on your broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage, but it’s at least possible to grow small, tender heads. Start brassicas indoors to give them the best possible chance to grow and reach maturity in the shade.

Peas

While peas perform best when in full sun, you can still get a harvest if they’re planted in part shade. You might even be able to trellis your climbing peas so that the plants are able to climb out of the shade to reach more sun. It is important to plant your peas with enough time for them to reach maturity before the summer heat comes. While partial shade will help keep them cooler for longer, eventually they will stop flowering and producing peas in the summer’s heat. For more info on growing peas, check out Grow Awesome Legumes.

Certain herbs (such as mint, cilantro, dill, and parsley)

While Mediterranean herbs such as rosemary and oregano prefer full sun and soil on the drier side, other herbs such as mint, cilantro, dill, and parsley don’t mind a bit of shade. The shade will help keep the soil moist and will help delay bolting. Trim (and cook with!) herbs planted in part-shade regularly to help keep the plants bushy and compact. And a special warning about mint: be sure to plant it in a container to keep it from spreading prolifically.

Alternatives to gardening in the shade

Container gardening

While your yard might be submerged in shade, perhaps there’s a sunny spot on a deck or front porch that could be a great spot to grow veggies in containers. Virtually every type of veggie can be grown in a container provided the container is large enough for the crop, and you water and fertilize regularly to keep the growing medium moist and full of nutrients. Containers can also be moved around as needed to capture the most amount of sun available as the sun’s angle changes.

Rent a community garden plot

If your house is in the middle of the deep woods your best bet for getting a sizable garden harvest could be to rent a plot at your local community garden. Community garden plots are typically very inexpensive to rent for an entire season and will let you grow sun-loving veggies much more successfully. If you garden in a community plot be sure to set reminders to water your garden when the weather’s hot and dry, as you won’t be able to check the state of your plants as easily as in a backyard garden.

Garden with neighbors and friends

If your neighbors and/or friends have unused backyard space that gets full sun exposure, try striking up a deal with them! If they let you use the space for gardening you can bestow them with tasty garden-grown produce throughout the season. If your friends happen to be gardening enthusiasts all the better- you can share the work, share knowledge, and share the reward!

Don’t let the semi-shaded parts of your garden be nothing more than wasted space. Maximize your harvests by growing some of these shade-tolerant plants and saving the full-sun spaces for sun-loving crops. Every harvest you can get from a shady space is a gardening win!

Even though summer can get hectic, don’t forget to take a step back from the to-do list to plan your fall garden. While the tomatoes are ripening and the peppers are plumping, it’s time to be thinking about which seeds to sow and seedlings to transplant for fall harvests.

Why plant a fall garden?

As your first frost date approaches, you can still plant cool season crops as they can tolerate a frost or even a freeze. In some ways, fall crops can be easier to grow than spring crops as the ground is readily workable and temperatures drop into the ranges that cool-season crops prefer rather than getting hotter. Cool-season crops can sometimes struggle to germinate in high heat though, so if you are planting from seed you may want to consider starting indoors or setting up some shade cloth. Above all, make sure the soil is kept consistently moist until the plants start to take off.

Another advantage of planting cool season crops in fall is that some of them, such as carrots, parsnips, beets, cabbage, and kale, will actually sweeten up after enduring a frost!

What plants can I grow in fall?

Most cool season crops will grow well in fall, so long as they are started with enough time to reach maturity. These include:

Brassicas: brassicas such as broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, and kale do very well growing into fall as they are generally quite frost-tolerant, and their flavor improves with the frost. These crops do take some time to reach maturity though, roughly 60-80 days or more from seeding to harvest depending on the plant and variety, so be sure to start seeds in time or buy transplants from a garden center.

Lettuces and leafy greens: lettuces and leafy greens such as spinach, chard, and arugula are rock stars in a fall garden. They grow quickly and can be harvested repeatedly until the cold weather finally knocks them out. In most cases the leafy greens are not as frost resistant as brassicas, so you may want to consider protecting them with a hoop house or some floating row cover, to help extend the harvests once chilly weather sets in.

Root vegetables: root vegetables are great candidates for a fall garden. Radishes are especially quick to mature and can be planted well into fall. Others such as parsnips, carrots, and beets take longer, so again be sure they have enough time left in the season to mature. Root crops often don’t transplant well, so buying seedlings from the garden center may not be a viable option.

Garlic and shallots: unlike the other fall crops that are planted in summer and grow into fall, garlic and shallots are planted in late fall for harvesting next season. While they don’t need to go in the ground now, you will still want to be thinking about where to plant them when the time comes and ordering sets soon to be sure they will arrive in time for planting.

When should I plant my fall garden?

To sort out when to get your seeds started and your transplants planted out for your fall garden, look for Cool season plants in Planter:

Then, look at the number of days needed for Germination and the number of days from Sprout to Harvest for that plant. Work backwards from your first frost date to determine when you need to plant to ensure there is still enough time for the plant to mature and produce a harvest. While frost-tolerant plants can keep growing past your first frost date, it is good to get your fall crops planted with a bit of extra time in case of slower growth or extreme weather conditions.

There is a lot to tend to in the garden in the midst of summer, but it’s also time to plan ahead and start planting for fall. Planter makes it easy to figure out which crops can be planted for a fall harvest, so you can spend more time getting out in the garden!