What to Plant in September in Zone 5: Fast Greens and Radishes
In USDA zone 5, early September still has a short window for fast greens and radishes. Then cover crops. Skip garlic, tomatoes, and late cabbage seed.
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September Zone 5 September zone 5 fall planting
What to Plant in September in Zone 5
In USDA zone 5, early September still has a short window for fast greens and radishes. Most long-season fall crops are too late from seed. Then switch spent beds to cover crops. Skip new tomatoes, peppers, and melons. Do not plant garlic in September.
First frost is often around mid-October in many zone 5 gardens, but yards vary. Use My Garden frost settings or the zone 5 fall calendar and count backward. See What to plant now, September zone 4, and September zone 6.
Sow These Now
- Lettuce, arugula, spinach: early September is the last typical window. Keep seedbeds cool and moist. Catalog fall windows for arugula run about August 25 to October 10. Fall lettuce, fall spinach, fall arugula.
- Radishes: a short crop if several weeks remain before a hard freeze. Confirm with frost settings. Fall radishes.
- Kale: late from seed. Transplants can still go in early in the month. Fall kale.
- Broccoli and cabbage: too late to seed for a fall head. A 70-day cabbage sown from seed in September will not head before typical frost in zone 5. Harvest what you transplanted earlier, or grow fast greens instead. Fall broccoli, fall cabbage.
Cover Crops on Spent Beds
If a bed will not hold greens or garlic, sow winter rye this month. It can go in until about 2 weeks after first frost, near October 24 at zone defaults. Oats need 6 weeks before first frost, so they are past. When to sow cover crops by zone.
Wait on Garlic
Do not plant garlic in September in zone 5. Cloves need cool soil later in fall. Order seed garlic now if you have not. Garlic by zone.
Next Steps
This week: sow a short row of lettuce, spinach, arugula, or radishes if you still have weeks before frost. Clear one spent bed for winter rye. Put seed garlic on the list for later fall.