Cool Season crops in Z5...two harvests possible?

15 years ago

I see that some others on the veggie forum (thinking they are 'late' in getting their cool season items out) are considering sowing them in July for a fall harvest. I've never sown crops for multiple harvests here in NH, as I've simply only ever gone by the "DS them by Memorial Day" and never gardened any other way (with consideration to multiple harvests). I sowed my cool-season items in March, and just got them in the ground this past weekend.

We're lucky if we get 120 days for production up here between End of May and end of Sept...

Can I have some input from Z5ers as to how you go about extending your veggie harvests when WSing? I may simply 'save' some room in the veggie patch for later sowing if it's possible...or would I use the same spaces? Thanks!

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Comments (5)

richdelmo
15 years ago
Mary, being close to you my growing season is somewhat similar to yours. I have sowed second rounds of lettuce, broccoli, radish (boring no more of them) and carrots with pretty good luck. The biggest problem for me was more bugs and slugs and things for the second round compared to the spring sowing.
dirtbert
15 years ago
I've had luck with a second round of peas also. Just planted in the same spot a while after the first crop is done. Green beans may be another candidate for you.
I tried brocolli last year, but didn't start it early enough for a second harvest. (although I am a zone cooler also)
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Jay, I always worry about that kind of weather-induced bolting and some years it is inevitable because onions are biennials. I am particularly worried about it this year, just because we've had such abnormally cool weather much of this winter. For anyone reading this who is new or fairly new to growing onions, the key is that onions which are less than the diameter of a No. 2 pencil (approx. 1/4") generally will not bolt even if exposed to temperatures below 45 degrees Fahrenheit for a prolonged period of time. Once the onions have reached 1/4" in diameter, prolonged or repeated exposure to temps below 45 degrees push them into dormancy, and they 'think' that dormancy signals the end of their first year of growing. Then, when they warm up and start growing again, it is the second year and they do what biennials do in their second year.....they send up a flower stalk to set seed. I don't know any way to prevent that sort of bolting because it is a natural process. The best chance of preventing it likely would be to grow them under a low tunnel and hope the low tunnel keeps them warm enough during cold spells that they aren't pushed into dormancy. It might work even better with a frost blanket added inside the low tunnel Eliot Coleman-style during colder spells. I guess you could keep the low tunnel warmer by painting milk jugs or 2-liter or 3-liter bottles black, filling them with water and using them as solar collectors. With low tunnels, I'd be worried about excess humidity on sunny humid days though. (sigh) Jeff, I think we only have two kinds of growing seasons here....those that are too wet and those that are too dry. I am not sure which is worse. As much as I hate drought, I almost think I'd rather have drought than a rainy year. At least in a rainy year, you can irrigate, at least for as long as you can afford the water bill and as long as you are not under mandatory water rationing. In a wet, year, though, we can't vacuum up the excess moisture out of the ground. I've had the idea in my head for months that this would be "the year of the bean" because my beans didn't produce well last year, and of course, it is always the year of the tomato at our house. However, I'm starting to fear it will be "the year of mud and floods". Dawn
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littleonefb
15 years ago
Mary,

I'm fairly close to you, about 20 minutes from the Nashua border and zone 5 as well.

cool crops, beans and snow peas. Sow now and they go into early July, unless we end up with super hot all June.

2nd week in August I sow another round of snow peas and beans. Same method as WS but the containers are in the shade to germinate. they grow quickly and harvest the snow peas and green beans around second week in sept.

Carrots I do in window boxes and just sow right into them all summer long, same with radishes. the radishes grow all through the summer, not a cool temp veggie.

Grow both cool weather and warm weather lettuce the same way as the carrots and radishes.

Fran
retiredprof
15 years ago
Mary: I start my fall crops between 8/15 and 8/30 here in zone 7. Beans, definitely, and lettuce, spinach, radishes, cole crops. I find them more challenging than spring crops because of the heat when starting up but, if you stick with them, they'll do well as the temps drop.

Prof
franeli
15 years ago
I cut down the pea foliage(mid July) and add compost, then transplant four week old broccoli and cauliflower. This gives me a second crop of broccoli+cauliflower which are harvested end of Sept. to first week of Oct.
Summer lettuce transplants(slobolt) are interplanted among the four week old cole transplants. This gives me lettuce when tomatoes come in.
June 1, I transplant squash or pepper plants in areas where I pick spinach. Spinach beds are done by mid-June and the other plants take over until frost. I've also used the old spinach space for a second fall cole crop...direct seeded.
Pole beans can be planted June 1 on the outer edge of a pea bed where they will climb on bamboo poles. Beans come in about 60 days from germination and will go until frost.
Bottom line, (but this is Z4) make sure you have transplants in by July 1 for fall, or at least seeded.
Beets+carrots+lettuce.
Light levels(the sun) start to get low here by mid-Aug. with shorter growing days.

Cool Season crops in Z5...two harvests possible?

Comments (5)

richdelmo

dirtbert

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littleonefb

retiredprof

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