Here in zone 6 fall beets, carrots and kale went in a couple of weeks ago, and fall cabbage were set out as plants sown in mid June. This week Asian radishes and escarole. Next week turnips. Early Sept. lettuces.

I'm a relative newcomer to gardening, a bit past "Clueless Newbie" in amberrose's taxonomy of board members. I've gone a year with my unplanned raised beds, and managed to get a fair number of tomatoes, eggplant, cucumbers and peppers over the season - and have slain the evil melonworm! This year I'm trying to put some more thought into my garden plan. But I'm still not entirely sure what is easy enough for an urban backyard gardener like myself to grow in only his second fall out there. So the following is a list of what I'm thinking of putting in this fall (seeding in August, transplant mid-Sept) - I'd appreciate it if anyone could point out if there's something I'm looking at that is too tough for a beginning gardener to take on in the So. Florida climate: Zuchinni, Butterstick Squash, various pole and bush beans, arugula, bibb lettuce, fennel, spinach, cucumbers, honeydew, watermelon (along with various herbs I've grown before), bell peppers Tomatos - Lemon Boy, Green Zebra, Yellow Pear, Sweet 100's, Cherokee Purple I've got a slot for one more tomato plant, if anyone has a suggestion for a variety that is easy and fairly bug resistant - if not, I'll just double up on the Yellow Pears that my daughter eats like candy straight from the vine. Albaby

Oz, In order to start flowers from seed now, you are mostly looking at one of two types.....and your choice of which to plant may be dependent on when your average first fall occurs in your part of the state. You can still start warm-season annual flowers from seed now if they flower relatively quickly from seed....flowers like zinnias, cosmos, marigolds or gomphrena. Or, you can start cool-season annual flowers from seed now and they will grow a little more slowly while the weather remains hot, but will grow and bloom into the winter months if properly hardened off before really cold weather arrives. This would include flowers like pansies, snapdragons, dianthus, violas and ornamental kale and cabbage. Actually, you also could start the seed of many biennials, perennials, and wildflowers between now and the end of the calendar year. The planting dates vary with the chosen flowers. Ilene, I'll list my five or six favorite sources for heirloom tomato seeds. There are many out there, but these are the most reliable ones. With these, you almost always get exactly what you ordered......with some of the others that are out there, you sometimes get crossed seed. Baker Creek Heirloom Seed (www.rareseeds.com) (based in Missouri)--I like this one because they often have Ozark-type heirlooms not available elsewhere, and they put LOTS of seeds in each package. Victory Seeds (www.Victoryseed.com)--I like this one because they strive to be totally accurate in their histories of each tomato, unlike some companies which exaggerate in their ad copy. They alse have great packaging and quality seeds. I always have great germination rates with their seeds. Tomato Growers Supply Company (www.tomatogrowers.com) This is the first tomato seed company I discovered long ago and it will always be one of my favorites. Great selection and great quality. Also a great source of pepper seeds. Run by Vince and Linda Sapp for many years, and I think Vince passed away in 2006. I am hoping Linda keeps the company going. Totally Tomatoes (www.totallytomato.com) This used to be a great company but it was bought by a big conglomerate and I am not quite as fond of it as I used to be. Still, it has some seeds you can't get anywhere else. Be advised it is not 'totally tomatoes' any more and has a bit of everything. Southern Exposure Seed Exchange (www.southernexposure.com) This company focuses on seeds that grow well in the south and southeast. Their catalogue blurbs are very informtive. Seed Savers Exchange (www.seedsaver.org) This is THE source for true heirlooms, as opposed to manufactured heirlooms. They have seeds of all types of heirloom veggies and flowers. This is the group that really popularized seed-saving and planting heirlooms. You don't have to buy a membership to be able to order from their catalog, but a membership entitles you to receive access to thousands of items not found in the retail catalog. I buy a membership just to support their mission of saving heirlooms. I have purchased seeds of many heirloom melons, pumpkins, squash, corn and flowers from them as well as their wonderful tomatoes. Sandhill Preservation Center (www.sandhillpreservation.com) This is a small, family-operated organization and you have to follow their ordering directions explicitly or they will reject your order. They aren't being difficult to deal with, just that there's just the two of them and one of them has an 'off-the-farm' job as well! This is an incredible source for heirloom seeds, and not just tomatoes but many others as well, esp. heirloom sweet potatoes....and heirloom poultry as well. There are several ways to keep your peach blooms and tiny fruit from freezing during a late freeze, and none of them are guaranteed. The most successful way I have found is to string the trees with Christmas lights (the larger the lights, the better) and then cover the trees with large sheets of plastic. The plastic holds in the heat from the light bulbs. You can keep the flowers and fruit warm for days this way, but it generally fails to keep them warm enough to survive snow or sleet. You can use plastic tarps, plastic swimming pool covers, etc. I buy plastic in big rolls at Home Depot or Lowe's--usually I get the one that is 10' wide, but sometimes all they have is the stuff that is 6' wide. I keep some plastic and duct tape in the garage every spring, because you never know when a late frost will hit. I've had pretty good luck with this one. You can sometimes save them by turning on the sprinkler and running it all night if a freeze is predicted. This will work if the temp is only going a couple of degrees below freezing. The old country way of doing it is to soak hay or straw in kerosene, put it in a metal bucket or bin, and light it on fire. (I'm too scared of burning down the place to try this one, but lots of oldtimers swear by it.) If you ever try this one, you probably would need to stay awake all night to be sure you don't set your place on fire with your burning smudge pots. Dawn

Much of what you want to harvest in the fall, you'll have to plan for now, and plant before it gets too late in summer. Perennials seldom flower in the year planted. Check with knowledgeable nurseries for the colors, size, and textures that you want and put them into a small raised bed. The quickest, cheapest way; is to make a pile of dirt and fill in the edges of the pile with straw or something similar. Having a clay-like soil, makes raising the level and loosen the soil desireable for a successful start.