Submitted photo Planting crops such as beets, radishes, carrots and Brussels sprouts can lead to a fruitful fall harvest.

By the time August comes around, I’m usually pulling things out of the garden and feeling blue because next spring is so far away. Last year, however, I learned about succession planting, and it changed my outlook on gardening. I already knew about cold weather crops that are planted in late March and early April, but I never thought about transferring that mindset into fall crops.

Before you begin, you need to know a few things about the crops you are planting and the frost dates in your area, as well as prepping the soil for new crops.

The soil should be free of weed growth and previous crop residues. Additional fertilizers may not be needed if the summer crops were heavily fertilized.

Another method is to wait until the seedlings have sprouted and apply a light side dressing of fertilizer about 3 inches from the seedlings. The seed packet is your friend as far as planting dates, days to maturity and sun/shade preference.

The first of August is the earliest fall crops like beets, radishes, leaf lettuce, carrots and swiss chard, to name a few, should be planted. Some books and fact sheets differ on this date, but we have found all of these will produce at least something if planted after Aug. 1.

The seeds of these vegetables should be planted directly into the garden. You must plant the seeds slightly deeper than spring planting. Sometimes soaking large seeds in water overnight before planting helps them to germinate.

Watering is the key. Soils may form a hard crust over the seeds, which can interfere with the seeds germination. Applying a light mulch of vermiculite, compost or potting soil will keep the soil at a more favorable temperature for germination.

Young seedlings may need to be watered more during the first week or two of growth. Do not allow seedlings to dry out. Frost dates are important to know. In our area, light frost can come as early as late September. The University of Minnesota Extension has a very good fact sheet dealing with days to maturity and cold hardiness.

Crops such as broccoli, cauliflower, cilantro and swiss chard will survive a light frost. Beets, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, collard greens and kale will survive down to 20 degrees. Radishes can be dug until the soil freezes and garlic winters in the ground.

Some crops such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower and onions need to be put into the soil as transplants because of their longer days to maturity. The seeds should have been planted in pots around the first of July. Then around the first of August when the seedlings are hardy enough, they can be planted into the garden.

Nothing is better than going out to the garden Thanksgiving morning to pick Brussels sprouts for your Thanksgiving feast. Hopefully with this information you can continue gardening long into the fall. For details and the last fall planting dates for certain vegetables, go to: http://go.osu.edu/fallveggies