Five Vegetables I Plan to Grow In My Fall Kitchen Garden

As July is wrapping up, I have already begun growing my fall vegetables from seed. It hardly feels possible that it's time to start growing fall vegetables. Like many gardeners, I have not consistently grown a fall garden, but when I do, I have been happy with its results.

Each season, I try to expand my gardening knowledge and try something new. Last year, I tried my hand at purple broccoli. Unfortunately for me, I never got to taste my purple broccoli harvest, because my dog Otter decided to help herself to it. I think it is safe to say it was doggy approved.

This year I'm going to try my hand at growing brussels sprouts. I started them by seed indoors and will transplant them outside in about three weeks. As a gardening coach, I always recommend trying something new, but I'm also a firm believer that having a garden full of tried and true, easy-to-grow veggies is the best way to ensure a fantastic fall harvest.

Here are five cool-season vegetables I plan to grow in my garden. Most take between 25 and 55 days until harvest, and some only need as little as four hours of sunlight.

First Fall Vegetable: Spinach

If you enjoy cooking with fresh spinach or in a salad, spinach is a must-have for any fall garden. Spinach loves cool weather, and some varieties can be grown throughout the winter in milder climates. The different varieties I plan to grow this year include Olympia Smooth, Baby Leaf Hybrid, and Bloomsdale.

Spinach needs about 5-7 hours of sunlight to grow, so it's best to plant it in a sunnier location in your garden. Tip: Look for varieties that are resistant to downy mildew (water molds).

Second Fall Vegetable: Parsnips

Parsnips are a sweeter root vegetable that is a fall pleaser. They also make a good alternative to carrots and are packed full of nutrients. I enjoy roasting parsnips with butternut squash, potatoes, and sweet potatoes for a side dish during the colder months.

Parsnips can be a bit tricky to germinate and may be better suited for a more seasoned gardener. They are best directly sowed into the garden and can take up to 3 weeks to germinate, so be patient. Parsnips need low nitrogen, so plant them in different parts of your garden from vegetables that require higher nitrogen. Tip: If you are planning to grow both carrots and parsnips in the same garden bed, do not plant them together; instead, pair them with chives to help deter garden pests.

Third Fall Vegetable: Beets

As I have gotten older, my love for beets has grown. I love to cut raw beets into ribbons, place them on a tortilla with fresh hummus and some feta cheese. The other way I enjoy them is roasting them and dropping them into a spinach salad with some berries and goat cheese.

I realize beets are not for everyone, but if you enjoy them, then I highly encourage you to add them to your fall garden. Beets come in red, golden, and white varieties. Some varieties are sweeter than others. One of my favorites is chioggia, but this fall I'm planting a blend. Tip: Plant seeds directly into you're garden bed and plant the seeds every two weeks for a continuous harvest.

Fourth Fall Vegetable: Lettuce

Lettuce is easy to grow and only needs 4 hours of sunlight. I start my seeds in mid-late August. There are hundreds of different varieties out on the market. I usually grow butterhead, a mix like Wildest Garden Lettuce from Territorial Seeds, or Salad Bowl from Burpee. I love that every night I can create a new and different salad based on my selection of lettuce.

Lettuce loves nitrogen, so be sure to top off your garden with fresh compost and worm castings to help feed it during the cooler and wet months. Tip: Protect your lettuce in late summer and early fall from cutworms and moth larvae by covering it with a crop cover.

Fifth Fall Vegetable: Peas

Peas are another family favorite that is easy to grow and doesn't take up a lot of space in your garden. They also make great companion plants for most of your fall vegetables, like lettuce and beets, as they add nitrogen back into the soil, providing nutrients to the vegetables planted nearby.

If you plan to grow peas, they will need support from a trellis, and most varieties need at least 4 feet of support. There are, however, varieties that only grow between 18 and 22 inches, which are advertised as not needing support, but I have found that those varieties do better with some type of support. Tip: Plant between 15 and 20 plants per person. Directly sow the seeds in the garden with about an inch of space between them.

Those are just a few of the vegetables I plan to grow in my fall garden. Fall gardening can be just as rewarding as your summer garden, and allows you to extend your growing season.

To learn more about planting a fall garden, please join me on August 7th, 2025, at 6:30 PM PST for my live webinar Beyond Summer: Unleash Your Fall Garden's Potential.