4 2009-10-27T06:29:50+11:00 false In theory, I should have amazing fall gardens -- I live in zone 7, in the DC-metro areas, and we have long, wet-but-not-sopping autumns. However, I have tricky light conditions in my backyard, and I haven't had a lot of success with fall greens. This year was better than last year. Here are a few notes (these are very specific to my conditions, YMMV): * Plant more Tokyo bekana. I LOVE this salad green, and no matter how much I plant, I will always want more. My fall planting is less troubled by slugs than my spring planting was. * This is the second year in a row that fall spinach has failed for me. I don't think I have the right light/temperature combo to grow it in the fall. It did well in the spring though, so I will continue to plant it in the spring. * Red orach does not germinate well in the fall. It doesn't go bitter when it bolts though, so just plant extra in the spring. * Fall planted ruby streaks and mizuna suffered terribly from slug damage. I have one mizuna that was from a mix that is still growing very well. I wish it had bolted, because I would have saved seed from it. Like the mizspoona, it provided greens for me all summer and is still producing. * Mizspoona does not germinate well in summer or fall. Plant a large patch of it in the spring, and expect to last and last and last and last. Don't be afraid to cut it back hard when it gets too big, because it comes back just fine. * Creasy greens doesn't do well in the Fall. The leaves are small and look like they have leaf miners. * Plant more corn salad. I planted a nice big patch of it (well, big for me -- about 1x2.5 feet), and I wish I had more, and I KNOW I will be wanting more after the other greens are done. * Arugula did not germinate well in the fall. * Plant Fall chards/beets by August 1. Chards planted after that sulked. Perpetual spinach did really well in the Fall, after looking sickly all summer. Look for a new seed source for this and try it again next year. * Osaka purple mustard did awesome in the fall. I have it everywhere, and it's so pretty and yummy. Other mustards (komatsuna, tatsoi, mixes) also germinated well. Next year, I will pay attention to when my self-sown mustards sprout, and I'll immeadiately plant seeds for the rest. * Stop trying to like cooked kale. It will never happen. You've given it lots of tries and cooked it lots of ways. Accept that you don't like it. Grow baby leaf kale for raw eating, then pull the plants when they get too large. Large kale is not worth the real estate, and cannot be kept small. Also, like Fall chards/beets, September 1 is too late to plant these for fall. Try August 15 next year. * Pea shoots do awesome in the fall. Plant more of them. However, they don't regrow after being pinched back, like they do in the spring. Expect 1 harvest per plant. Luckily, I just bought a HUGE supply of sugar snap peas (like 600 seeds total) for $3.00, so I can afford to "waste" them on Fall pea shoots. * The erba stella I sowed in the spring germinated late, but it was good all summer. It's still going strong. It's getting a bit tough, so I wouldn't want a lot of it in salad, but mixed in with other greens, it provides a nice variety. I thought it was annual, but I'm starting to think it's perennial -- I need to look into that. Seeds planted in September did not germinate. * Stop buying mustard mixes. There is nothing new in them. I already have everything that's in them, and there's always something in them that I don't like. My Mild Kingdom mix has something hairy in it -- I can't identify it, but I know I don't want hairy mustard in my salad. UPDATE: Yep, erba stella is an annual, but it's hardy to zone 6, so it may overwinter or at least last long into the winter for me before it croaks. 5 false 70090 false false false Entry 2009-10-26T15:00:00+11:00 DMY Public 2009-10-27T06:36:35+11:00 1713 Sunny 68 F