Fall 2024

Prepping Vegetable Beds for Winter

by Greg Letts

So, you have harvested the last of your tomatoes and peppers for the year. Now what?

Let’s start with dispelling the myth that your veggie beds need to rest. Your vegetable beds don't need to rest during the off-season. In fact, it's much better for your soil to stay active. Keeping it active encourages earthworms to stay and allows the millions of beneficial microbes to continue their important work.

By maintaining an active soil ecosystem over the winter, you'll have a healthier, more fertile growing environment for your spring planting. There are several ways to accomplish this:

Compost in place

This is simply cutting off your spent plants at the base, chopping them up into small pieces, spreading them evenly across the soil surface, and covering them with a layer of compost. This material will break down, adding organic matter to your soil and promoting beneficial microbial activity. As the compost breaks down, it enhances soil structure and fertility. Adding a layer of mulch over the compost is a good idea to protect the soil for winter as well.

Plant something else for winter

There are lots of greens available to plant in the winter. Kale, chard, cabbage, lettuces, and a variety of herbs are easy choices. Broccoli and cauliflower are winners also. Broccoli is right up there with tomatoes on my list for the best homegrown veggies.

 

 

 

 

Plant a cover crop

A multi-seed cover crop is a great way to rebuild your soil with nutrients, including nitrogen, and add organic matter. At Our Garden, the UC demonstration garden in Walnut Creek, Master Gardeners use mixes containing 8–12 different seeds. This includes legumes, mustards, vetch, fava beans, phacelia, sunflowers, and more. The cover crops are chopped down and composted in place before they can go to seed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Webinars available on our YouTube channel:

The Benefits of Growing Cover Crops in Your Garden

Transitioning to the Cool-Season Garden