Vegetables That Taste Better After Frost
Kale, collards, Brussels sprouts, spinach, carrots, parsnips, and turnips turn sweeter after frost. Leave them in and pick after leaves thaw.
Published by ThriveThyme
first frost fall harvest kale carrots
The Short Answer
Kale, collards, Brussels sprouts, spinach, Swiss chard, carrots, parsnips, and turnips taste sweeter after frost. Cold makes the plant turn stored starch into sugar, which works like antifreeze in its cells. Leave these crops in after first frost and keep harvesting.
Greens
- Kale and collards: sweeter after a few frosts. Both take hard frost into the low 20s F.
- Spinach: sweeter in cold weather. Cover or mulch to keep picking into winter.
- Swiss chard: milder after light frost, but less hardy. Cover it below 28F.
- Brussels sprouts: often best after a light freeze. Pick sprouts from the bottom of the stalk up.
Roots
- Carrots: roots sweeten in cold soil. Keep them in damp, mulched soil and dig before the ground freezes solid.
- Parsnips: best after several freezes. Mulch and dig into early winter, or leave some for an early spring dig before new growth starts.
- Turnips and beets: sweeter after light frost. Pull before the ground freezes.
- Leeks: not sweeter, but they hold well. Mound soil or mulch and dig as needed.
How to Harvest After Frost
- Wait until frozen leaves thaw. Picking frozen leaves bruises them.
- Remove leaves that stay limp, dark, or water-soaked after thawing.
- Mulch roots with 6 inches or more of straw or shredded leaves. Mulch delays soil freezing.
- Damp soil holds roots better than dry soil. Soggy soil rots them.
What Does Not Get Sweeter
Tomatoes, peppers, squash, beans, basil, and melons are damaged at 32F. Pick them before frost: what to harvest before the first frost.
Next Steps
See days until typical first frost and your crop list on the Frost Harvest Desk. For covers that stretch the season, read protecting plants from early frost.