Benefits of a Fall Garden
Lack of Heat & Bugs in the Fall Garden
The benefits of a fall garden for one is the lack of bugs and heat. In North Texas both are an extreme problem during the summer. With the hundred degree weather right now and most of my summer garden dead I am looking forward to cooler weather the ease of a fall garden. If you are having the same hot summer as I am I just wanted to encourage you to not give up on gardening before you look into having one in the fall. There can be great reward in the garden you raise as well as in your mental state of mind.
I live in zone 8a, North Texas and when I say our summers are hot I am not exaggerating! We deal in 100 degree days fairly regularly which is very hard on a plant. I wrote an article on weather and gardening here.
But there is hope! With the end of August the days get cooler and the bugs get fewer. I am in fall garden mode!
We have already talked about the first benefit of gardening in the fall and that is the lack of heat and bugs.
Root Veggies and the Fall Garden
I think the fall garden is perfect for root veggies. I can’t get carrots or beets to grow during the summer garden. But in late fall I can spread some carrot seeds out in a raised bed and end up with beautiful carrots in the Spring. Check out my blog about growing carrots here. There are so many delicious root veggies to choose from and the wonderful thing about them as some get sweeter in taste as they are touched by the cooler weather.
Enjoying a Breath of Fresh Air
To me one of the biggest benefits of a fall garden is just enjoying being outside. Having dirt under my finger nails and the wind blowing in my face. It makes me feel alive again and enjoying the act of gardening; planting seeds, watching seedlings grow and the crunch of a veggie as I take a bite out of it. Like I said earlier the garden you raise can be helpful to your mental state of mind.
Please take a moment and check out the video I did for you. It tells about how 2024 has been a hard year for us. But the fall garden is calling and I’m getting ready for it. I hope you are too!
Here is to your homesteading dreams,
Shawn