With fall around the corner, finding the best fall vegetables to grow in Wilmington, NC can give a more healthful purpose to the autumn season. While most people focus on gardening in the summer, many vegetables available in the fall are classic family favorites at the dinner table.
ItÕs true that fall vegetable gardening is slightly more challenging than growing in the summer, but no less rewarding. And thereÕs more good news: with mild North Carolina winters, you can have better results in a fall garden than in other states with cooler temperatures! Thanks to NC being slightly warmer in the last quarter than other parts of the country, you can plant certain vegetables twice during the year.
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Many cabbage family vegetables harvest twice a year. So broccoli fans can enjoy it not only in the spring, but also in late fall. Keep in mind some veggies require a period of indoor growth for a specific time frame before being transplanted to your garden. Now, letÕs take a look at the best fall vegetables to grow in WIlmington, NC and how long it takes for them to harvest.
Tomatoes
While many parts of the country harvest tomatoes in the spring or summer, you can grow an excellent crop in the fall here as well. It doesn’t need mentioning the health benefits of tomatoes with their Vitamin C and lycopene helping to prevent major diseases.
Tomatoes fall under the category of vegetables you can grow successfully in NC twice a year. During spring, you can start planting them by mid April. In the fall, you have to start by August 1, and by planting indoors.
As you grow them indoors, you’ll have to wait about five to seven weeks before you can transplant them to your garden. After that, you’ll need anywhere from 75-100 days to harvest, depending on weather. Be sure to plant them about half an inch into the ground once transplanted.
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Spinach
You’ve likely heard all about the positive health benefits spinach provides, as long as people are willing to eat it. With the ability to mix spinach in with other tasty vegetables and various dishes, it’s an essential for keeping your health at an optimum level. You’ll be glad to know it’s a little easier to grow than tomatoes.
Spinach is usually a direct seed vegetable, and you can plant it around the first of August. Like tomatoes, you should place them about half an inch into the ground, though with at least half a foot apart from one another. Harvesting generally takes about 60 days at maximum.
Broccoli
Broccoli is one of the healthiest green vegetables there is; Vitamin K, C, potassium, and fiber are just some of the vitamins and minerals it contains. Broccoli is another biannual transplant plant that requires being planted indoors within the first week or two of August for fall. You’ll need seven weeks maximum before moving it to your garden where it can take up to 80 days of harvesting.
Allow 18 inches between each plantings so you have room for larger growths.
Cabbage
As mentioned earlier, some transplant plants require a little more time to grow before being moved to a garden. Cabbage is one of those, and you’ll need eight weeks indoors before it’s planted outdoors. While it takes up to 80 days to harvest, getting it started inside in August allows more time to avoid any harm from frosts.
“Hot Weather” Vegetables
Popular vegetables like watermelon, corn, and pumpkins are easily harvested in early fall, though need direct seed plantings by the first week of August.
For watermelons, you’ll need a lot more space in the plantings, roughly around 60 inches. Corn seed plantings need about a foot apart from one another, and pumpkins need about 48 inches. As you’ve probably noticed in past years, pumpkins take quite a while to harvest, sometimes up to 120 days.
With North Carolina frosts frequently hitting just a week or two before Thanksgiving, you have to get the timing worked out on planting all vegetables. Be sure to check the seed packets when buying, as they usually list the approximate days to harvest as a general guideline. Happy fall planting!