11 Crops To Plant In August
August brings simultaneous harvesting and selective planting. When it comes to crops to start in August, the best ones bridge warm late-summer temperatures and extend into cooler days and nights. So, what’s the Epic Gardening team planting in our late summer gardens? Join gardener Katherine Rowe to learn what Kevin and the expert crew select as August favorites for late-season crops.
Contents
Late summer brings continued harvests and makes room in the garden as summer growers fade. It’s a good time to take inventory and get a jumpstart on the best crops to plant in August, bridging the gap between warm and cool seasons.
Here, we’ll see which crops Kevin and the Epic Gardening team are sowing and transplanting in August. This transitional time is best for crops that stand up to heat and extend into cooler temperatures. Depending on your growing zone, we’ve got selections for cold, moderate, and subtropical regions.
Belstar Broccoli
Belstar Broccoli Seeds
Shin Kuroda Carrot
Shin Kuroda Carrot Seeds
Easter Egg Blend Radish
Easter Egg Blend Radish Seeds
Get a quick harvest before deep frost, or grow cool-season vegetables all season in mild areas. You can also establish perennials for future harvests. Here are our 11 favorite crops to plant in August.
Artichoke
botanical name Cynara scolymus | |
sun requirements Full sun | |
height 3-5’ |
In addition to their deliciousness, artichokes are highly ornamental, with structural leaves and unique flower forms. Perennial in zones 7 and warmer, the silvery green, spiky, frond-like foliage fills out during the cool season.
The artichokes follow, with usually three to five per plant. The artichokes themselves are underdeveloped flowers, and if you have plenty, let some develop into full flowers. The purple tufts are showy and attract pollinators.
In mild climates, plant artichokes in late summer and early fall. Direct sow seeds, start them in seed trays, or purchase them as nursery seedlings. The plants get established over mild winters for spring production. In subsequent years (but not the first year you plant), cut back the plant’s stalks in the late summer or early fall to encourage a dormancy period and allow for new shoots in the spring.
In cool climates, sow them indoors after the last spring frost for transplanting. Grow them through the spring and fall, cutting back the main trunk late in the season. Insulate the stalk and roots with mulch or straw for overwintering.
‘Green Globe Improved’ builds on an 1863 heirloom variety for better production, less spiny tips, and more uniform plants. They’ll mature in five to six months and grow across climates, sown in early spring in cold climates and late summer in warm climates.
Broccoli
botanical name Brassica oleracea (Italica Group) | |
sun requirements Full sun | |
height 24-36” |
When planting broccoli in August, it helps to source heat-tolerant selections, as this crop is prone to bolting in high temperatures. Still, seedlings like to get their start in the warm days of summer and take off as temperatures cool.
‘Belstar’ is bred to tolerate heat. A traditional heading broccoli, its florets form six—to eight-inch crowns and side shoots. They mature in about two months. Its tight stems and compact habit improve heat tolerance, but the widely adapted variety also grows well in cold climates.
Chinese broccoli ‘Kailaan’ produces small florets and leafy greens with a rich broccoli flavor. The thin stalks and florets are ready in 60 to 70 days.
Sow broccoli seeds in a tray and place them in a partially shaded area to protect them during the August heat. They’ll be ready for transplanting in two to four weeks. Sowing broccoli in late summer produces bigger plants and more yield in the fall. If the lingering summer heat is too high, the seedlings will suffer.
Carrots
botanical name Daucus carota | |
sun requirements Full sun | |
height 1-2’ |
Carrots are easy growers wherever you have space in the garden. They grow in the cool seasons of spring and fall and are heat-tolerant, able to withstand warm-to-cool transitions.
Scatter seeds on the soil surface and lightly spread the soil to ensure contact. Water them in and wait until autumn to harvest.
‘Shin Kuroda’ is a heat-tolerant variety with sturdy roots. The Japanese variety produces orange-red carrots that are five inches long and stout. A high moisture content gives them an exceptionally sweet flavor. ‘Shin Kuroda’ grows well in dense soils and develops in 75 days.
Radish
botanical name Raphanus sativus | |
sun requirements Full sun to partial shade | |
height 6”-36” |
Radishes are quick-growing and pair well among the carrot patch. Scatter both carrot and radish seeds for a complimentary planting. Harvest the speedy radishes before the carrots are ready, thinning the crop and aerating roots simultaneously.
Radishes are crisp, crunchy, colorful root vegetables and prolific growers in cool temperatures. Their compact stature makes them a good choice for containers and raised beds.
‘Easter Egg Blend’ combines red, white, pink, purple, and bi-color radish globes. The colorful roots are ready to pick in as little as 30 days.
‘Cherry Belle’ is a classic bright red radish with white flesh and a crisp flavor. These Holland heirlooms won the All-America Selections award in 1949 for their fast growth, easy care, and flavorful roots.
Salad radishes are a gardener’s and chef’s favorite. Sow them up to several weeks before the average first frost date. Harvest the little belles when the roots are about 1’ in diameter.
Beets
botanical name Beta vulgaris | |
sun requirements Full sun | |
height 1-2’ |
Beets are tasty when they come fresh from the garden. Sow seeds six to eight weeks before your anticipated first frost date in the fall for autumn picking and throughout the winter in mild climates. Most beet varieties take between 45-65 days to reach maturity..
‘Early Wonder’ is a favorite heirloom with early production and flavorful leafy tops – deemed by many gardeners to have the best flavor. ‘Early Wonder’ yields one-and-a-half to two-and-a-half-inch purple-red globes in about 48 days.
Baby beets are exceptional in containers and for fresh eating. ‘Robin yields bunches of small, deep red, two-inch globes and is ideal if you want to harvest early for baby beets; this lovely variety is quick to mature, taking only 45 days.
Turnips
botanical name Brassica rapa var. rapa | |
sun requirements Full sun to partial shade | |
height 12-15” |
If you aren’t growing turnips, give them a try this season! They are easy companions to beets. The centuries-old root vegetable is a hearty stand-in for potatoes, and the vitamin-packed greens are edible, too. Turnips grow well in the ground, containers, and raised beds.
‘White Lady’ turnips are baby salad turnips with sweet, smooth white skins. Pick them early, at 30 days, for two-inch roots. Crunch them fresh or in stir-fries and other dishes.
‘Purple Top White Globe’ adds interest with purple shoulders above the soil level and creamy white beneath. Roots reach two to six inches, depending on picking time (about 50 days). Use them mashed, roasted, as fries, or for fresh eating.
Bush Beans
botanical name Phaseolus vulgaris | |
sun requirements Full sun | |
height 2-3’ |
In mild climates, there’s still time for peas and beans. Bush beans are ideal for spanning hot and frosty conditions and mature in 45-65 days depending on variety.
Bush beans have a delicate root system and are best direct-sown with adequate spacing for air circulation. Harvest the pods regularly so plants keep producing more.
French green beans like ‘Maxibel Filet’ are long and slender in the tender French style. The full-length lean beans are stringless and grow six to eight inches.
Flax
botanical name Linum grandiflorum | |
sun requirements Full sun to partial shade | |
height 1-3’ |
Flax is a showy blooming plant grown for its seeds, the edible oils that are pressed from the seeds, and its flowers. These easy-care, low-maintenance growers tolerate heat, humidity, and cool weather.
‘Blue and Breezy’ produces edible seeds from sky-blue flowers. This one is perennial in zones 5 through 8.
‘Scarlet’ is a showy annual variety with a profusion of red blooms that attract pollinators. While this variety’s seeds aren’t edible, it’s an easy bloomer between seasons. If you do not deadhead this variety, ‘Scarlet’ self-seeds for recurrent color.
Direct sow flax by scattering seeds on moist soil and gently tamping for soil contact. The seeds need good light exposure to germinate, so don’t worry about covering them. Plant them in late summer for fall color.
Snap Peas
botanical name Pisum sativum | |
sun requirements Full sun | |
height 2-7’ |
If you live in a northern region where August marks the start of fall, planting this crop is the perfect way to welcome cool weather. Snap peas thrive in the cool season. The optimal soil germination temperature is 40 to 70°F. Trellised peas add vertical interest on a trellis or arch. With easy access, snap them fresh as you stroll the garden or use them in salads, stir-fries, or steamed. Place seeds directly at the base of a growing structure 10 to 12 weeks before your anticipated first frost.
‘Sugar Daddy’ is a compact grower at two to three feet high. Ideal for small spaces, it grows well in a container and needs only a small trellis or fence for support. The sweet pods are stringless on short vines with improved disease resistance. Slender, deep green, three-inch pods are ready in about 60 days.
‘Sugar Magnolia’ is another favorite with purple flowers and pea pods. Its tall, vigorous vines grow six to seven feet long and need a large trellis or an A-frame.
Cherry Tomatoes
botanical name Solanum lycopersicum | |
sun requirements Full sun | |
height 2-8’ |
For tropical and subtropical gardeners, the best tomato crop of the year is often planted in August. Cherry and small-sized tomatoes are good picks for late summer. Sow them in trays in a shady spot to provide the least heat stress for seedlings.
When it’s time to harvest, pick the tomatoes early and let them ripen indoors. They’ll be just as tasty and less susceptible to splitting and pest damage than on the vine.
With unique coloration and bite-size appeal, ‘Chocolate Cherry’ is an exciting addition. The sweetly flavored, one-inch round cherries ripen to purplish-red. ‘Chocolate Cherry’ is indeterminate, with long stems up to six feet tall. Thin-skinned and juicy, these tomatoes are among the most flavorful of the cherry types.
‘Sungold’ is an early-maturing variety and a gardener favorite for its bountiful fruits, sunny color, and sweet flavor. The plants resist fusarium wilt and tobacco mosaic virus. Productive vines yield about 120 tomatoes per season.
Fennel
botanical name Foeniculum vulgare | |
sun requirements Full sun | |
height 2-6’ |
Fennel has tall, feathery, anise-flavored foliage and large yellow flower umbels. A favorite of pollinators, it attracts numerous beneficial insects and is a host for swallowtail butterflies. It offers edible flowers, leaves, seeds, and roots. Plant this crop in August in mild climates. It can perennialize in zones 4-9.
‘Finocchio’ fennel has airy foliage and bloom clusters. Its anise-flavored roots reach three to four inches and mature in 90 days. ‘Dragon’ produces large, aromatic bulbs. The crunchy, dense licorice “bulbs” mature in 75 days.
Look for bronze fennel for a beautiful, cold-hardy herb garden addition. It produces the same sweet anise flavor characteristics but with tawny fronds.