Are you wondering what to plant in September month? September is considered as a perfect month to start your fall garden, especially in the south. However, depending on your zone, you might be surprised at all vegetables, fruits, and herbs that you can plant in September.
Why Fall Garden Is Best?
Planting crops in the month of September help you to continue growing fresh and healthy foods at home. Apart from growing healthy veggies or crops, here are some benefits you may enjoy.
• During fall season, you don’t need to water them regularly, once or twice in a week is more than enough
• Fall even offers your garden a respite from many garden pests you get in spring and summer season.
• While summer heat can make some vegetables like arugula and lettuce bitter, frost sweetens them.
When To Plant Your Seeds?
You should always plant your seeds before first frost in your zone. Well most of the vegetables you plant in spring can be grown in fall garden too. It simply means, they tolerate light frost, thrive in less light and perform best in mild temperatures.
Basic Care For Your Plants:
Just like your summer garden, your fall vegetable garden also has four basic needs which include:
• Sunlight:
You still need to make sure what you plant in September receives enough amount of sunlight during day. Even though they tolerate shade, plant them in an area where they get little bit of sun as well.
• Soil:
Plants always need healthy soil which is rich in nutrients and well draining. You can also improve your traditional garden with garden soil.
• Water:
A good rule of thumb is to water your plants about an inch once in a week. You can also use inexpensive rain gauge to see if you need to add more water or not.
• Food:
Whether it is spring, summer or fall season, you should provide good top shelf of fertilizer to all your plants to encourage healthy growth. You can also put natural ingredients as earthworm castings, bone meal or kelp in to garden as meals for plants.
What To Plant In September?
After knowing the frost date of your area, it’s important to know what you can and can’t plant in your region. So, keep on reading the article to know what to plant and what not to in your region in the month of September.
Zone 3-7 New Zealand Region:
The vegetables that do great in this region are as follows:
• Spinach
• Radishes
• Mache
• Arugula
• Bok Choy
• Lettuce
Zone 5-7 Mid Atlantic Region:
The states in mid atlantic region are New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The following vegetables do great in these regions:
• Spinach
• Radishes
• Lettuce
• Arugula
• Mache
• Bok Choy
Therefore, the same vegetables grown in New England region can be grown in Mid Atlantic States too.
Zones 5-6 Southern Regions:
The states of southern regions are Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, north and South Carolina, Arkansas, Louisiana, Florida, Alabama and Mississippi. The following plants works great in these regions:
• Arugula
• Bok Choy
• Spinach
• Brussel sprouts
• Cauliflower
• Broccoli
• Beets
• Turnips
• Kale
• Lettuce
• Turnips
Zone 3-6 Midwest Regions:
The states of 3-6 Midwest regions include, Michigan, Minnesota, Kansas, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Nebraska, lowa, North and South Dakota, and the temperatures of these areas are drastically different from summer to winter. And those temperatures can vary from state to state.
• Collard greens
• Mache
• Mustard greens
• Radishes
• Spinach
• Peas
• Lettuce
• Turnips
Zones 6-7 South West Region:
South west region states include texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Arizona. Most of south west region is a desert climate which means very hot and dry.
If you live in these regions, choose plants in the following:
• Beets
• Bok choy
• Spinach
• Cabbage
• Carrots
• Kale
• Leeks
• Lettuce
• Swiss chard
• Broccoli
• Mustard greens
• Turnips
Zone 9-10 Rocky Mountain Region:
The state of rocky mountain regions include all areas that run through the Rockies such as Idaho, colarado, Montana, Wyoming and nevada. As the temperatures of mountains change by hour, we have only few plants to consider in the month of September.
• Mache
• Spinach
• Arugula
• Lettuce
Zone 5-10 Pacific Coastal Region:
The pacific coastal region states include California, Oregon, and Washington that have a Mediterranean climate with rainy winters and dry summers.
The following are the plants you can try in the month of September.
• Bok choy
• Collard greens
• Mache
• Mustard greens
• Radishes
• Spinach
• Arugula
You can also try planting perennial vegetables and fruits in September month. They come easily year after year and work great for the people who don’t want to plant every year.