2. Sow Quick-Growing Salad Greens
If you are starting your autumn garden a bit late in the season, do not despair. Quick-growing salad greens are the perfect solution for rapid, continuous harvests. Leafy greens such as spinach, arugula, butterhead lettuce, mustard greens, and tatsoi can transition from seed to table in as little as thirty to forty-five days. These crops thrive in the mild sunlight of autumn and are far less likely to bolt, or go to seed, than they are during the scorching summer months.
To maximize your yield of fresh greens, practice succession planting. Instead of sowing all your seeds at once, plant small batches every ten to fourteen days throughout the late summer and early autumn. This technique ensures a continuous, steady supply of tender leaves rather than an overwhelming single harvest. You can also utilize the “cut-and-come-again” method, harvesting only the outer leaves of the plants and allowing the inner crown to continue growing for subsequent harvests throughout the season.