Fall is 2nd chance to plant
 
Sherry Boas
Sentinel Correspondent

September 3, 2001

Summer's end marks the beginning of one of Central Florida's two main planting seasons.

If you are a gardener new to Florida, you might be thinking that September is harvest season, time to put the vegetable bed to rest for another year. But if you do, you will miss one of Florida's best growing periods. September in Florida is the time to buy packets of seeds and browse the local garden centers for transplants to set into the ground.

"People are always incredulous that we put tomato plants out in September," said Sandy Tyner, owner of The Country Garden in Clermont. "They're still thinking, 'What about frost?' But if you put the plants out now, you'll have beautiful ripe tomatoes for Thanksgiving and Christmas."

Tyner and her husband, Bill, are busy this month growing seedlings and stocking transplants of fall-season plants to meet customer demands for fall vegetables, herbs and flowers.

"Now is the perfect time to plant peas, beans, all sorts of lettuces like endive, arugula, romaine, Swiss chard, French sorrel and greens like spinach and collards," said Tyner, whose south Lake County nursery grows a large and diverse assortment of vegetables, herbs and flowers.

"Now is also the time to put in transplants of eggplant, sweet bell peppers as well as broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage toward the end of the month. Onions and garlic should be planted too. Herbs that have suffered through the hot summer months really sing in the fall."

Tyner discourages new Florida gardeners from trying to grow hard squashes like butternut or acorn squash that are typical fall plants in Northern gardens.

"It's pretty much impossible to grow them here. People should just go to farmer's markets and buy them instead."

Margaret Ann Gaines, a master gardener when she lived in Orange County, moved to Lake County five years ago.

"People from the North don't realize that if you plant lettuce now you will be able to cut leaf lettuce for your salad. Fall is the very best time to plant things. I get the best kick putting out petunias in the fall and enjoying the blooms until the following June."

Gaines, who lives in Clermont, enjoys growing onion sets, chives and a variety of other herbs that tend to become year-round fixtures in her gardens.

"I have thyme and oregano that act like perennial ground covers."

Gaines advises new residents to read all they can on Florida gardening.

"Most garden books have good information for everywhere but Florida. People need to read gardening books specific to Central Florida," said Gaines, who studied under master gardener and Orlando Sentinel writer Tom MacCubbin.

Paul and Sue Morris are the owners of Universal Gardens, a 168-acre organic farm off County Road 721 in Webster. From their two, 10-acre vegetable plots, they raise an abundance of familiar and specialty crops that they sell at their farm stand as well as in community farmer's markets.

"It takes time to get used to the idea of planting a garden in the fall. As days get shorter and cooler, plants grow slower. It is the opposite of up North," said Sue Morris, who is from the Chicago area.

"Timing is important in getting the most out of a fall garden before the first frost."

The Morrises recommend planting tomatoes, okra, black-eyed peas, cucumbers, basil, peppers, eggplants and beans now.

Their best advice to people creating a new garden is to "build your soil with organic matter to help the sandy soil hold water and nutrients."

Copyright © 2001, Orlando Sentinel