And just like that, summer started her slow transition to autumn. The days are still lazy and hot, but the evenings and early mornings have that slight nip that says summer will soon be a distant memory.
Here in the Lowveld, autumn might officially begin around mid-March, but often it is barely felt.
One of the longest-standing sayings around here is that we don’t get to enjoy in between seasons. Instead, summer turns into winter overnight and without warning, and there is certainly some truth to that, especially these last few years. It feels as though we have summer until almost the end of May, and then on June 1st, we wake up to icy temperatures (for us at least).
March is usually a month of change.
Right now, if you are lucky, you will still be harvesting the summer bounty and thoughts of winter gardens would not yet have crossed your mind. But for this delicate dance between the seasons to be a success, you must start some planning, or at the very least enjoy some idle winter garden daydreaming.
With our winters being so short, it is important to know how to make the most of your time, or else your winter-loving brassicas will encounter the blasphemous heat of spring and end up devoured by an army of aphids.
March is the month that I clean out the tired summer annuals, both flowers and veg, and start new seed.
With the weather so up and down lately, I plant heat-hardy vegetables, like tomatoes and basil and spring onions to kick off my “autumn garden”. Because of our temperate winters, I know my warm weather plants will survive.
Later on, in late April, I plant my cool season plants such as broccoli, peas, carrots and spinach.
Like I said, planning and timing are essential to the success of your garden but you don’t have to overthink or over do it. Just having a basic guide like this one, to help you along, can be enough of a foundation to having a great winter harvest. So, let’s dig in.
Harvesting & Preparing Your Beds
Removing plants is always bittersweet for me, although over the years I have become more accepting of this garden task.
It seems such a shame to pull or cut down a plant that is still giving you one or two fruits but to make the most of any space, you need to know when to harvest that last delicious organic treat.
Taking spent plants out of your garden is not just about making space.
Often, by the time the summer is over, the garden has some signs of disease, like blight or powdery mildew. Or it is harbouring some unwelcome bug fugitives and their eggs, just waiting to unleash havoc during the next warm spell.
By the time summer comes to an end in my garden, my pumpkins, butternut and zucchini or marrows have succumbed to mildew and squash bugs, and my tomatoes are struggling under the sudden weight of red mites, especially during intense dry spells. I am, of course, also partly to blame, either through my neglect or from my unwillingness to use inorganic means to rid myself of my garden problems.
Removing diseased or bug-ridden plants is important if you want to go into the next season with fewer issues. If you were to leave a mildewed plant to rot into your soil, you’ll end up contaminating your soil and have to deal with an even bigger problem mildew issue later on. The same can be said of bugs. They could lay their eggs which will stay dormant in winter only to infest your garden in summer.
When removing these plants, be sure to put them in a bag for the next garden refuse collection or burn them. Do not add them to your compost pile as this will be as bad as leaving them in your garden beds.
As for the plants that are still healthy but have simply come to the end of their lifespan, chop them up and compost them.
Soil Preparation
You know you’ve become a serious gardener when you find yourself suddenly obsessed with soil.
Soil is the beginning and end of all life. We come from it, we return to it, and so do our plants. The more attention and care we give to our soil, the more our plants benefit and so does the earth, essentially.
If you live in a summer rainfall region, and the season has brought with it a lot of rain, your soil will be somewhat depleted. The same can, in a way, be said of seasons that are too dry. Intense droughts can do great damage to the soil, by harming the micro-organisms and also by causing compaction which harms the plants.
Before each season it is important to understand what is going on with our soil so that you can improve it where it needs to be improved. Here’s what you can consider doing in autumn.
- Soil Testing
Whether you are trying to DIY your soil testing or if you have the money to spend and you are looking to bring in a soil testing expert (something worth the money if you are breaking new ground), it helps to know what you are dealing with in terms of what your soil is made up of and what nutrients it might need.
Soil Amending
My husband is a farm boy and whenever I am fretting about what I should do with the soil to make it more effective, he tells me to just add more compost.
And so far, this advice has worked so well for me.
At the start of Autumn, I like to put the equivalent of a store-bought bag of fresh compost into each new bed. If I am exclusively using my own compost then I will try to boost it with an organic fertilizer. I am currently using an Atlantic brand fertilizer, but I also use a liquid plant food.
I am going to say something a bit controversial, but it must be said.
Amending can also include “turning” or loosening your soil lightly. I know that there are many no till gardeners out there (those who don’t turn the soil), but a lot of people still do, me included. I have tried no till gardening and had no luck. My ground compacted, even with additional compost and regular watering.
For now though I will mention that if you do turn your soil, autumn is the time to do it.
Selecting Your Autumn/Winter Crop
No matter what time of year you are planting, the first step to a productive season is to understand your climate.
Here in the Lowveld, for instance, planting winter crops too early leaves your tender seedlings vulnerable to insects and damage from the heat.
Before you start planting, you should look at your weather forecast to make sure that the upcoming days and weeks will be cool enough (but not too cold) for your seedlings.
Cool season vegetables are not just for Autumn, they will happily grow through winter too if they are not frost tender. Again, here in the Lowveld, where we don’t deal with frost, our autumn gardens continue to flourish throughout winter.
For the most part, the vegetables you should start planting now include:
- Brassicas: Broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, kale
- Leafy Greens: Lettuce, spinach, Swiss chard
- Root Vegetables: Beetroot, carrots, parsnips, turnips
- Other: Onions, garlic, peas, beans
If you live in a frost-free area, you can also grow tomatoes, peppers, and various squashes such as butternuts and baby marrows.
South Africa’s winters are generally quite short, so succession growing, especially in places with a mild winter can be a juggling act, but it’s worth doing if you have the space.
Seed Starting or Seedlings?
If you are like me, nothing is better than pulling out your seed box and planning what you’ll be starting. But planting from seed is not your only option, you can also buy seedlings from a nursery.
Planting bought seedlings is a great way to get ahead of your season, but you will be greatly limited in terms of variety. The cost of buying seedlings is also a lot more than buying seed, when you think about just how many plants you can get from a packet of seed vs. buying a 6 pack of seedlings.
If you are seed starting, make sure that you keep the containers in a spot where they will get some sun, so that they can stay warm and germinate evenly.
Direct Sowing Autumn Seed
Some plants are best started in the ground.
When the weather starts to cool, you can direct plant things like carrots, beetroot, onions and your seed potatoes. You will need to keep an eye on your direct planted seeds so that you can reseed where necessary.
Nurturing Your Autumn Harvest
Should you stay in a mild winter climate, caring for your garden at this time of the year is a lot easier than working with a summer garden. And it will give you a great excuse to get out there in the warm winter sunlight, which let’s face it, is heavenly.
When caring for your autumn plants, you must water carefully and consistently as the summer begins to fade, but you can relax the watering as the season grows cooler. You will also need to adjust when you water. Watering in the morning allows enough time for the plants to dry off, which in turn prevents disease.
As the days grow cold here in the Lowveld, I sometimes only water 3 times a week. I do, however, mulch well with leaves, straw and compost to ensure that the water goes in and stays in. Mulch can also help regulate the temperature in your garden, keeping your plants warm, and it can help a lot with the weeds.
Although the weather is certainly cooling off as the seasons move on, we are still not safe from the unwanted attention of pests, and we also need to be on the lookout for certain diseases.
Aphids, slugs, caterpillars and grasshoppers can become a problem when the heat and the rain subside. Beware of aphids in particular, as they will quickly destroy your broccoli and other brassicas. And with the cooler weather comes powdery mildew. To prevent the mildew from destroying your plants, make sure that you water at the base of your plants and also space your plants in a way that will promote good air circulation.
*
My green fingered friends, autumn is a stunning season in the garden and we are truly blessed to be able to grow so much of our food all year round. The colder months come with their own challenges, but the rewards, those fresh, nutty heads of broccoli, crisp carrots, a basket of potatoes, and a delicious cabbage, are well worth the work.
