Can any Southern garden truly be a Southern garden
without greens planted in the fall garden? If you
are from the South, your Mother and/or Grandmother
probably cooked them up with a bit of smoked meat
or bacon. My parents always had a fall vegetable garden
when I was a young boy growing up on our family
farm in Virginia. Greens were a tasty and very nutritious
staple at our Sunday dinners when I was kid.
In the South, the term “greens” refers to vegetables
whose leaves are eaten when cooked until tender.
During cool fall weather, mustard, turnip, collards and
other greens flourish in the vegetable garden. And
November is an excellent time to plant them.
Greens are highly recommended for the home vegetable
garden because they are easy to grow and
very productive. Growing greens is a great way to
keep your vegetable garden productive through winter.
M
ustard and turnips are fast growing greens. Mustard
and turnips can be planted until the end of November.
Harvesting can begin as early as five or six
weeks after planting depending on temperatures.
Harvest the entire plant, or “crop” the plants by removing
only the lower, larger leaves. Cropping provides
harvest while allowing the plant to remain and
continue to grow. It also allows you
to extend the harvest. Generally,
mustard and turnip can be cropped
until late winter or early spring from
a planting done now if the winter is
mild.
Cropping turnips will reduce the
size of the root, so you may want to
reserve an area of your turnips for
root production. On those plants, do
not harvest any leaves. The leaves
will produce food through photosynthesis.
This food is transferred to
the roots for storage, and the plants
develop nice size turnips ready to
harvest in eight or nine weeks.
Collards are another green that
commonly found in Southern gardens.
Mid-September is the last
date recommended for planting
collards but I’ve seen a few trans plants
still for sale at a couple of local
garden centers. Even though we
are past the recommended planting
date for collards, I would certainly
plant collards now as transplants.
A frost will “sweeten” collards and
make the greens even tastier. Properly
spaced plants are best harvested
by cropping the older, larger
leaves. Collards tolerate high temperatures
better that most greens.
They are also very cold hardy and
survive temperatures in the low 20s
without damage.
Cool weather, adequate water and regular fertilization
with nitrogen will promote optimal production.
Spinach is slow-growing for the first few weeks after
it comes up. Be patient and keep the plants well-watered,
and they will eventually grow large enough to
harvest the entire plant or begin cropping.
Other greens commonly found in Southern garden
include Swiss chard and kale. These greens should
have been planted in September.
Swiss chard is an excellent substitute for spinach. It
is easier to grow, more productive and tolerates warm
weather much better than spinach. The leaves of
chard can easily grow 14 to 18 inches tall, so production
is much greater than with spinach. Chard is available
in several white-stemmed types. Red-stemmed
types such as Vulcan and a variety called Bright
Lights — which produces stems of white, rose, red,
yellow gold or orange — are ornamental and even
look great in flower beds.
When cooked, chard is similar in flavor to spinach,
and tender young chard leaves can be eaten raw.
The leaf stems are delicious when cooked separately
and have a mild, almost asparagus-like flavor. Space
transplants 8 to 10 inches apart. Harvest chard by
cropping.
Kale is a close relative to collards and has a similar
flavor when cooked. Kale is very cold hardy and can
withstand temperatures in the teens. Space transplants
10 to 12 inches apart.
Although not generally cooked, lettuce is also often
included with the greens, and leaf and semi-heading
varieties of lettuce are easy to grow. The heading lettuce
varieties, such as Iceberg, are more of a challenge.
Leaf or semi-heading types of lettuce to try include
romaine, buttercrunch, bibb and oak leaf types,
which are sure winners.
These days, lettuces come in an amazing variety
of colors, from deep green to chartreuse and shades
of pink to red to burgundy. And the leaves may be
smooth, ruffled or fringed. Lettuce cultivars with red
foliage add interest and extra nutrition to your salads.
Red Sails is a variety that is easy to grow and does
not become bitter until the heat of summer.
Other vegetables can be planted now in your garden
along with greens. Root crops such as radish,
carrot and beet thrive in cool weather. Of course,
green onions and shallots can be harvested all winter
and into early spring.
PHOTO CREDIT: William M. Johnson
Greens are highly recommended for the home vegetable
garden because they are easy to grow and
very productive. Growing greens is a great way to
keep your vegetable garden productive through winter.
