Planting and growing your own food is a priceless skill to have and one that is quite easy to learn. So, as inflation and global food supply shortages become increasingly worrisome, more people are looking toward growing their own food crops at home. One of the very first and most important things to know is the correct seasons in which to plant certain crops. So here is a breakdown of the best vegetables to plant during South Africa’s Autumn season.
The difference in temperature preferences
In general, the herbs and vegetables best planted during Autumn prefer temperatures between 5°C and 20°C. Although some, such as broccoli and lettuce, are happy to survive during even colder months. Broccoli, in particular, suffers in temperatures higher than 24°C, and high temperatures will cause lettuce to mature too quickly and go to seed before harvest time.
At the same time other vegetables, such as carrots and cauliflower, would suffer in temperatures lower than 5°C. In fact, carrots can survive in temperatures as high as 28°C.
What to plant in Autumn
Due to the slight difference in temperature preferences of each plant, it is ideal to know which to plant at the beginning of the season and which to plant towards the end. For this reason, I have added the favoured temperatures for each food plant in our Autumn list.
Leafy green Autumn plants
- Spinach: Ideal temperature is 10°C – 15°C.
- Kale: Best performs between 18°C and 24°C, and although a touch of frost is not bad for kale it prefers not to be exposed to excessive cold for too long. So it is ideal to plant kale in early Autumn or Spring.
- Swiss chard: Thrives in a fairly broad temperature range of between 8°C and 25°C. Although, the plant does not do well outside of this range.
- Lettuce: prefered temperature is 15°C – 20°C. Anything much higher than 28°C may cause the plant to seed too quickly.
Root vegetables to plant in Autumn
- Onion: Optimal temperatures for growth are 10°C – 20°C. Onions require cooler temperatures and are frost tolerant.
- Garlic: Similar to onion, garlic’s prefered temperatures are between 10°C and 20°C.
- Celery: Requires a cool climate with no frost and with temperatures of 15°C to 21°C.
- Leeks: Ideally grown between 10°C and 20°C. Leeks are frost resistant while high temperatures cause them to harden rapidly.
- Carrot: Prefers temperatures between 10°C and 25°C. Anything below 5°C would severely affect the root’s growth.
- Beetroot: Ideal temperatures are 14°C – 20°C. They can survive mild frost but excessive exposure will stunt the development of the beet.
- Turnip: Grows best between 5°C and 15°C. Turnip is slightly frost resistant but only once the plant is established. However, if the climate is too warm the root may develop a bitter taste.
Autumn Brassica
- Broccoli: Prefers temperatures between 14°C and 20°C. It does not do well at temperatures above 24°C so it is best to plant it later in the Autumn season.
- Cauliflower: Very similar to carrot in its requirements, the optimum temperature for growth is 12°C to 25°C. While prolonged exposure to temperatures below 5°C or over 30°C is detrimental to its development.
- Cabbage: Optimal temperature range is 12°C – 20°C. It can survive temperatures as low as – 3°C without damage and is fairly resistant to frost.
- Radish: Ideally grown between 15°C and 20°C, the plant can tolerate frost but prefers not to.
Herbs to plant in Autumn
- Parsely: Grown in a wide temperature range of 10°C – 30°C and has a resistance to minor frost.
- Thyme: Prefers slightly warmer temperatures of 20°C – 30°C. Although once established, it is tolerant to frost. So should only be planted early in Autumn.
- Chives: Has a wide range of acceptable growing temperatures between 10°C and 30°C. The plant is also frost resistant, however, growth is slow when temperatures drop too low.
- Rocket: Ideal temperature for germination is 15°C – 20°C, although can survive in as low as 5°C.
- Sage: Performs best between 20°C and 30°C. Although sage is a hardy plant, tolerant to frost and will survive temperate winters.
- Oregano: Ideal temperatures are 12°C – 28°C. It is a hardy evergreen plant that is also tolerant of frost.