December is upon us! As we look forward to the holidays, baked goods, family, and, most notably, colder weather, we need to focus on what plants will thrive the best In our Tower Gardens so we can continue to harvest fruits and veggies for all holiday cooking needs!
Helpful tips from Grow Jim: "December brings a noticeable drop in temperatures to Florida, and daylight is short. For most of us, now is the ideal time to plant cool-season crops like arugula, beets, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celery, Chinese cabbage, chives, cilantro, collards, dill, endive, fennel, garlic (sets), kale, kohlrabi, lettuce, mizuna, mustard, onions (sets), parsley, potatoes (sets), English peas, radish, sage, spinach, and turnips. All can be started from seed unless indicated otherwise.
In North Florida, delete potatoes from the list.
In South Florida (frost-free areas), add beans, cantaloupe, cucumbers, peppers, squash, southern peas, sweet corn, sweet potatoes, eggplant, tomatoes and watermelon to the list, as well as perennial vegetables that can be planted any time, including achira, aibika, cassava, chaya, katuk, longevity spinach, moringa, Okinawa spinach, sugar cane and tindora".
Follow this page for regular updates on what to plant and harvest each month, as well as growing tips all month long!
If you're growing in a Tower Garden:
This blog post guides you to continue growing your heat-loving crops, like the precious heirloom tomatoes you planted in the fall, by protecting them from frosts & freezes!
Check out this post about winter crops in the Tower Garden (Including Strawberries, which thrive in the Tower Garden in the winter months. For strawberry info, check out this video)!
Year-Round Planting Guide From the University of North Florida
The University of Florida's planting guide is what I used years ago to begin to understand Florida's confusing planting seasons. Click on the guide and then scroll down until you see 'Table 1 Planting guide for Florida vegetables.'. Click 'VIEW', save, and print. This will give you a nice list that you can reference
again and again!
Central Florida Planting Guide
North Florida Planting Guide from the University of Florida
South Florida Planting Guide from Tree Amigos Growers
Helpful 'infographics' from UF IFAS for all of Florida
Happy planting and Happy holidays!
Reach out to me with any questions or concerns by clicking here.
~ Leah Brooks
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