Extend the Growing Season by Sowing in August
Extending the growing season whether you’re a home grower or a farmer can be a great way of producing vegetables for more of the year. Not only does it offer extra seasonal food that can tide you over the winter months, but if you’ve had a difficult growing year (such as the drought I’m currently experiencing) it means there’s still time to rebound and find some little mental hope.
Kale growing strong in autumn
Whilst August might seem the time to wind down when it comes to sowing, it can actually be a very good time to begin plants. There are still long hours of daylight, the soil is warm but the heat of summer is beginning to wane, helping stop crops go to seed. It’s important to note that sowing in fall relies on frost dates for tender plants, combined with daylight length. For example, I began winter lettuces in my polytunnel last October. This was too late. The warmth was there but not the light, meaning I had tiny lettuces which got plagued by mice and voles. This year I’m starting them in August. Some can be harvested throughout autumn, but they will be large enough to sit in the polytunnel throughout winter.
If you prefer watching to reading; I have a YouTube channel and a video on this here.
CROPS TO START IN AUGUST
Lettuces - Quick growing summer varieties can be harvested before the first frosts, whilst hardy winter specimens can be under cloches. I’ve found even summer varieties will happily overwinter in a polytunnel.
Salad Onions - These are quick growing and can be harvested before the first frosts arrive.
Turnips - Grow small turnips (snowball/purple top milan) to golf ball size. These can be harvested throughout frosts as they’ll stop growing in the cold and sit in the ground.
Beets - Like turnips, beets can sit in the ground even when it’s cold without too much damage. Grow to golf ball size or a little larger.
Spinach - Spinach is a great colder season crop. In fact, it’s better not to grow in summer as it goes to seed easily. It’s fast growing, can survive frosts and by starting in August or autumn, you’ll have fall crops and another flush in spring.
Radishes - Radishes only take around one month to mature for harvest. Successionally sow these through August, September and October. Fewer hot days also mean they’re less likely to become woody due to watering inconsistencies.
Kale - A fantastic winter hardy crop, lots of kale becomes even sweeter when the frost hits. At this time of year, this brassica is also less likely to be damaged by pests such as flea beetle and caterpillars.
Mizuna/Rocket/Red Mustard - Quick growing salad crops are ideal this time of year. They won’t survive frosts but will provide bountiful greens in the cooler heat.
Chicory - A fantastic vegetable that loves the colder climate. Some varieties even change colour in the cold.
Pak Choi - A great eastern vegetable for stir fries that is winter hardy and will form great florets for harvest throughout the cold season.
Chard - Chard loves the cold and like kale, can become sweeter when frosted. It bounces back from cold days once the sun is out and with a variety of stunning colours, is great for growing for yourself and customers.
Leafy greens like spinach and lettuces may need protecting if you’re not harvesting them before the first frosts. Hardy greens like Kale and Chard can survive freezing outside, as can beets and turnips. I, personally, would start radishes and turnips in August with a view to harvesting them (turnips when they’re about golf ball size) before the frosts as they’re quick to grow.
There’s something rather fulfilling about sowing seeds and plant starting when it seems the garden is winding down for the year. You can still enjoy some wonderful leafy greens through the winter months. If you’re running a market farm as I am, extending the season can also be crucial, especially if you’ve have a tough growing year. It can also set you apart from other growers. For example, turning up at a farmers’ market with freshly harvested greens, spring onions and radishes in October can really draw customers in when other farmers might only have typical end of season vegetables.
Patience is, of course, required when starting winter crops. Growth is greatly reduced during the winter and, in fact, stop entirely during the winter season. This is why smaller plants can be hugely vulnerable to pests as they don’t have the capacity to bounce back after being nibbled. However, popping into your garden on a cool autumn’s day and finding rows of beautiful vegetables is extremely rewarding!