There is some great plants you can put in now, once the frosts have gone. Try beetroot, lettuce, parsnip, peas, radish, celery (in a milk carton), leek, lettuce, onions, mizuna, mitsuba, seed potatoes, rocket, silverbeet, and spinach.
It's not too late to plant in your garden! In much of the country, summer still is full steam ahead in August. In other regions, the hint of cooler evenings mean the growing season is beginning to slow down. But regardless of where you live, there's plenty of time left in the season left for growing things!
Planting a Late-Season Garden
There are many crops you can plant well into summer (as late as mid-late August) and still harvest a sizable amount of food.
Late summer planting
Choose quick-maturing crops. Spinach, lettuce and greens, beets, carrots, peas, and beans can be sown now. Most seeds will readily germinate in the garden now because the soil holds heat well into autumn; warm soil (in the 70°s) is ideal for seed starting, as long as the weather is not too hot.
The latest time to plant for most vegetables would be the second week in June with a short harvest time. If planting crops that mature within 50 days, you could plant those as late as the last week in June, but keep in mind the weather will be turning cooler, especially at night. Cool crops are best for late plantings.
For this Blooming Period, we're highlighting some late summer/fall favorites: callas; China asters; lisianthus; perennial sunflowers; and zinnias.
Planting in fall allows these plants to establish root systems that they can then bulk up over the winter. Also, in fall, there's usually more rain– which means less maintenance for you.
Gardeners in the coldest USDA Zones (1 to 4) should plant bulbs in late August and early September. Don't wait for the official start of fall on the calendar to plant your bulbs.
Fall is a good time for developing tomatoes because the cooler temperatures allow for better fruit set and insect problems diminish. Mid-July to the end of August is the ideal time to plant. When choosing your fall tomatoes, make sure you know if you're selecting a Determinate or Indeterminate type.
By the end of summer and into early fall, weed growth slows down leaving grass seed with less competition for water and nutrients. Planting in August or September affords the grass two cool season in which to grow (fall and spring) before withstanding the stress of scorching summer heat.
Just because it's the end of summer it doesn't mean that it's too late to plant in the garden. In fact, many plants — such as spring bulbs and perennials — need to be planted in the late summer or early fall months, depending on your zone, in order to generate enough energy to bloom in the spring.
Fast-growing root veggies such as radishes, beets, and turnips also thrive in cool conditions and take less than two months to mature. Fall is also a good time to plant onion sets and garlic cloves for harvest in late spring or summer of the following year. For more options, see 15 Picks for Your Fall Vegetable Garden.
September is a great time to plant those fall flowers. There are many varieties that can be planted this fall to start blooming early spring.
Autumn is a great season for annuals, perennials and evergreen shrubs to shine. In fact, some of the most popular flowers, like colorful mums, roses, dahlias, purple pansies and yes, even bright yellow sunflowers all bloom around September and October.
It's time for planting fall color, such as mums and asters, as well as sprucing up planter boxes. You also may be surprised to learn that it's the best time of year to plant perennials and shrubs (trees, too!) while plants still have an opportunity to establish their root systems before the ground freezes.
You can defy the heat of August and dig in some new garden space for late summer planting. You will certainly appreciate the additional space next spring. Some gardeners may choose container-friendly vegetables for August planting.
You'll want to wait until you have at least 3 or 4 true leaves before you consider transplanting. Work with your plant's weather preferences. Understanding whether you're growing cool-weather or warm-weather plants will help you determine when it's time to start thinking about growing outside.
After harvesting early-maturing vegetables such as salad greens, radishes, peas and spinach, gardeners can plant other crops in midsummer for fall harvest. You can successfully grow some root crops, greens and other vegetables from late June, July or August plantings.