LSU AgCenter's Weekly Message

You Don’t Have to Wait for Cold Weather to Plant Some Cool-Season Vegetables

It may not feel like it right now, but we’re approaching a time of year when we can plant many of our cool-season vegetables. Some can be planted earlier and some later, but almost all can be planted between mid-September and mid-October. These include cabbage, kohlrabi, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, bok choy, greens (collard, kale, mustard, turnip), radishes, beets, carrots, lettuce, shallots, garlic, and green (“English”), sugar snap, and snow peas.

There are a few exceptions. Seed pieces of white (“Irish”) potatoes can be planted between August and mid-September and again in late winter, and transplants of bulb-forming onions that grow well in Louisiana should be set out between mid-December and January. Fava beans aren’t a very common crop here, but I understand that the time for sowing these is October through November.

A second sweet spot during which a lot of cool-season veggies can be planted is late January through February. Cabbage, kohlrabi, broccoli, cauliflower, greens, radishes, beets, carrots, lettuce, shallots, and white potatoes can be planted at this time. Many can be established earlier or later, too.

If you want to give the garden a rest, you might consider seeding a fall cover crop. Cover crops can be used to build up soil organic matter, take nitrogen from the air and put it in the soil (in the case of plants in the bean family, or legumes), prevent loss of nutrients from the soil during the off-season (after adding compost or manure, for example), suppress weed growth, and prevent erosion. The first half of October is a time when many cool-season cover crop species – such as cereal rye, annual ryegrass, wheat, oats, hairy vetch, and crimson clover – can be planted.

The second class in the gardening and lawn care series will take place next Tuesday, September 16, at 6 PM at the Lee Memorial Forest Main Lodge (21139 Lee Memorial Drive, Franklinton). Please join us if you’re interested! Call or email me to register or for more information. The LSU AgCenter and LSU provide equal opportunities in programs and employment.

Let me know if you have questions.

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Dr. Mary Helen Ferguson is an Extension Agent with the LSU AgCenter, with horticulture responsibilities in Washington and Tangipahoa Parishes. Contact Mary Helen at mhferguson@agcenter.lsu.edu or 985-277-1850 (Hammond) or 985-839-7855 (Franklinton).