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Did you get your hands dirty this summer? No worries if you missed the window of opportunity for a spring/summer garden. This is the perfect time to start your fall garden!

We always have some type of vegetable garden in the summer, but this year it felt much more urgent. Thankfully the stores seem to have caught up with demand (at least in our area of Tennessee), but that doesn’t mean things won’t get crazy again in the fall. The weather has been very strange so far this summer, and the garden is just now starting to really take off. Today’s harvest filled out our store-bought salad!

We’ve got a move in the very near future, and one of the first things we’ll do in our new home is get the fall garden started. If food insecurity or financial uncertainty are even a blip on your radar, please consider growing a garden this year. It does not have to cost a fortune — you really can get started with things you have around your house. A few days ago, I planted a bunch of seeds in cups we got from the drive-thru. I cut them in half, filled with soil, and dropped the seeds in. The light misty afternoon rain got them started, and just five days later I have a bunch of seedlings sprouting! Once they get a little bigger, I’ll pop them into the containers that currently hold my waning squash and zucchini plants. If you don’t happen to have garden soil or flowerpots, try to scratch out an area along a walkway or mailbox. If you live in an apartment building, try growing some seedlings in a windowsill box. Ask if you can utilize a little-used corner of the parking lot at work. Google HOA-friendly garden plants. Gardening is something everyone can do — you just might need to be a little creative to find your spot. Don’t let excuses stop you from trying!

If you have a bit of money to spend, you can still find plant starts at home improvement stores. I plan to supplement my new garden with some of these ready-to-go plants. They are more expensive, but you don’t have to wait for slower growers to catch up (which won’t happen in the fall.) Some plants, like zucchini, can turn into a food jungle in no time. Ask the garden center employees to help you find the right plants to get you started. Sure, a zucchini plant might not feed your family for the whole winter, but it can help to fill out a skinny budget.

Seeds are much more cost effective, though you need to begin now if you plan to start seeds. I live in a growing area that can enjoy a second crop of green beans, squash, and salad greens. When the Coronavirus pandemic hit the US, many seed companies shut down due to massive traffic to their websites. It looks like many of those companies have replenished supplies. I’ve been able to buy several seed varieties that were unavailable in the spring.

Don’t be afraid to ask gardeners for help. Be on the lookout for affordable seeds when you shop at Walmart or the Dollar Tree. I won these seeds in a giveaway! Normally radishes don’t float my boat, but I love the greens. In case of a food shortage, anything edible would be useful.

If you’re new to gardening, or need help knowing what types of plants grow best in a fall garden, check out YouTube. There’s so much information out there! Some of my favorite channels:
MIgardener
Veronica Flores
Suburban Homestead
Plant Abundance
Roots and Refuge Farm

Gardening is typically a fun game of trial and error. In the case of this year’s precarious economy and food availability, though, it comes down to necessity. If hard times hit my family, I want to make sure that I made the effort to take care of them. Growing food is one way that I can do that.

(PS. Sometimes we end up taking care of other families with our garden, too. Take a look at the surprise I found in one of my tomato plants.)

Do you have a garden?