Forget the Heat! It’s time to get the garden ready for Autumn –
Gardeners’ Dirt by Carla Rodrigues (download as pdf)

PHOTOS CONTRIBUTED BY VICTORIA COUNTY MASTER GARDENER CARLA RODRIGUEZ
Colorful fall vegetables.
I know it is “melt your eyelashes hot” out there, but now is the time to start planning your fall gardens. Envision cooler temperatures, flower beds full of color, and bountiful fall vegetables — this is my happy place.
I know we only have five minutes of cooler temperatures in the morning, but now is the time to clean out your beds, apply soil amendments and make a plan for what you want to plant and where you want to plant it.
My rule of thumb when I’m planting vegetables and herbs is that if I don’t like it, I don’t plant it. My only concession is okra, which I plant, harvest and give away.
For the fall, I plant kale, lettuce, onions, arugula, cilantro, dill, broccoli, spinach, bok choy and cauliflower, but never Brussels sprouts. This year I may add Swiss chard and collard greens. For a whole lot of fun, plant pumpkins the last part of August. Just make sure you have a lot of room.

A variety of lettuce grows in this fall garden.

A variety of vegetables grow in a fall garden.
You can plant other root vegetables, herbs, and leafy greens in fall gardens. If you are going online to check on what to plant in the fall, make sure you are researching for plant hardiness in Zone 9a.
Believe it or not, mid-August is the time to plant many fall vegetables from seed. I just learned from fellow master gardener Sandi Coleman that I need to plant my cauliflower and broccoli seeds by Aug.15. This fact explains why last year my crop was a dud.
Though a few of my neighbors wished my bountiful, fall harvest would end. They were starting to lock their doors and turn out the lights when they saw me walking up with a bag full of lettuce and kale.

Gerbera Daisies
I love lots of color in the fall and winter. As the weather starts to cool off I head to my favorite nurseries for chrysanthemums. After the blooms are spent, cut them off for a second bloom. I plant hanging baskets with nasturtiums. I start them from seed. A bonus is that their blooms are edible.
Pansies and snapdragons grow everywhere there is sun. They also look great in hanging baskets. Dianthus, alyssum and gerbera daisies are also some of my favorites. The gerberas love the cooler weather. I always plant them in pots so I can bring them in when it freezes.
OK, admit it. You are thinking about the horrendous freezes we have had the last couple of years and you are thinking that planting flowers and vegetables in the fall is just a waste of time. Well, over the years I have been collecting frost blankets and bed sheets so I can cover everything when it freezes.
So far, so good, just make sure you are not covering your plants with plastic. Where the plant touches the plastic, it will freeze. I have had a few plants nipped by the frost, but I have never lost everything.
Another trick to combating the freezing temperatures is to string the larger Christmas lights (incandescent not LED) over the more tender plants. You can also give your plants a heavy watering before a freeze because it can help by creating warmth. Yes, the water loses its heat slower over the hours. Even my plumerias made it through the colder temperatures and the lights look so colorful.
So wipe that sweat out of your eyes, put on your gloves, and have fun in the garden planting and thinking about your bountiful and colorful harvest.
The Gardeners’ Dirt is written by members of the Victoria County Master Gardener Association, an educational outreach of Texas A&M AgriLife Extension – Victoria County. Mail your questions in care of the Advocate, P.O. Box 1518, Victoria, TX 77901; or vcmga@vicad.com, or comment on this column at VictoriaAdvocate.com.