Fall garden
Start These Seeds in July for a Fall Garden
A fall garden begins in the heat of summer. Here are the seeds to start in July, and a few tricks for getting them up when the soil is warm and dry. For what to sow directly for late-summer picking instead, the July guide covers both halves.
The short answer: start brassicas (broccoli, cabbage, kale, cauliflower) now for fall heads, sow carrots and beets to pull after the first cool nights, and keep lettuce, spinach and Asian greens coming as the heat fades. The hard part isn't growing them, it's germinating them in hot soil, and there are tricks for that.
The fall garden is a summer job
It feels backward to sow for autumn while it is still hot, but that is the rhythm. Plants started now grow through the tail of summer and mature as the nights cool, and cool nights make greens and roots sweeter than anything spring gives you.
What seeds to start in July for fall
- Brassicas: broccoli, cabbage, kale, cauliflower. Start them now for a fall head.
- Carrots and beets. Sown now and pulled after the first cool nights, they are hard to beat.
- Lettuce, spinach, and Asian greens. Quick and forgiving, and much happier as the heat fades.
Getting seeds up in summer heat
The hard part is not growing these, it is germinating them in hot, dry soil. The short version: sow a little deeper than you would in spring, keep the top inch consistently moist until seedlings appear, and shade the row with a board or a piece of cloth until they are up. For the full toolkit, see getting seeds to sprout in summer heat.
How much of this finishes where you garden
How many of these will finish for you depends on your local climate, not a date on a chart. By August the list narrows toward the fast movers. Some gardens have months of growing left; others have weeks. That is the piece Verna works out for your exact spot, so you start the right things at the right time.
Quick questions
Which seeds should I start in July for a fall garden?
Brassicas first, since they need the most runway: broccoli, cabbage, kale and cauliflower. Then carrots and beets, which sweeten after cool nights, and the quick, forgiving greens: lettuce, spinach and the Asian greens, all much happier maturing out of high summer heat.
Why start a fall garden in the middle of summer?
Because the growing happens before the harvest season does. Plants started in July grow through the tail of summer and mature as nights cool, and those cool nights make greens and roots sweeter than spring ever manages. Wait until it feels like fall and the growing weather is already gone.
See what still has time in your garden
Verna maps sowing, transplanting, and harvest timing to your exact spot.
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