JoAnne Skelly: Late season vegetable planting

My friend Karen recently asked me when to plant her fall vegetables. Midsummer planting is an excellent way to extend the growing season into the fall. I prefer gardening in the early spring and late summer. It’s cooler and the sun is less intense. Another advantage is that cooler weather improves the flavor of many vegetables. A trick to successful late season planting is to choose varieties with short growing seasons. The average first frost occurs between Sept. 15 and Oct. 1. Plants need to mature quickly before the hard freezes set in. However, with cold protection, crops often can grow into November and sometimes beyond.