Fall is the sweet spot of the year for building outdoor spaces — the mornings are crisp, the ground is dry, and there’s no spring backlog in sight. The weather’s just right to focus on our craft: blending the beauty and practicality of growing food, leveling gravel paths, setting cedar boards, and watching a new garden take shape before winter arrives.

What to plant, harvest, and tend in your late-October garden.

What to do to put your garden to bed for the winter.

Breaking down the definition of frost tolerance and discussing which plants will and won't survive when temps go below freezing.

When it comes to planting fruit trees, bigger isn’t better. Those lush, potted trees you see in spring garden centers may look promising, but they’re often stressed and prone to pests and disease. The healthiest trees start small — planted bare root and dormant in late fall or winter. During their first quiet season underground, they establish strong roots and settle in before spring growth begins. By the time the weather warms, these trees are ready to thrive with minimal care. So skip the instant gratification — bare root planting is the smart, sustainable way to grow a thriving orchard.

If your garden feels crowded this time of year, that’s not a bad thing — it’s abundance in action! At Tennessee Kitchen Gardens, we plant intensively, knowing we’ll thin and harvest as the season unfolds. Thinning isn’t wasteful; it’s an opportunity to enjoy tender greens and herbs while giving remaining plants more space to thrive. Pull what’s struggling, snip what’s shading others, and get creative with your harvest — add radish thinnings to salads or toss extra greens into scrambled eggs. A little intentional thinning keeps your garden productive and beautiful, and your kitchen full of fresh flavor.

What to plant, harvest, and tend in your Early-October garden.

What to plant, harvest, and tend in your late-September garden.

Warm fall days can trick cool-season crops like lettuce and spinach into bolting — shooting up flowers instead of giving you tender leaves. The fix? Choose bolt-resistant varieties, give them afternoon shade, keep the soil consistently moist, and harvest often. A little attention now will stretch your salad season into late fall.

The Annual Tomato Recipe Collection (Volume 2)
The countertops are overflowing, the fruit flies are circling, and it’s officially tomato takeover season. This year’s roundup includes a creamy labneh dip, that viral TikTok pasta, a spiced chickpea skillet, and a reminder that sometimes the simplest solution is just freezing the harvest for later. Consider this our annual tradition — new recipes, new inspiration, same late-summer abundance.

What we plant in Fall Gardens: The Grocery-Store Staples and the Garden-Only Goodness
Fall gardening in Middle Tennessee is overflowing with abundance. While summer crops like tomatoes and peppers are still producing, the cooler nights bring in a whole new round of greens. At TKG, we’ve filled our gardens with both the familiar staples you’d find in any grocery store—like broccoli, kale, and carrots—and the funky gems you’ll never see on a shelf, from spiraled romanesco to magenta radicchio. These “garden-only” crops remind us that fall isn’t just about food—it’s about flavor, discovery, and delight.

What to plant, harvest, and tend in your Mid-September garden.

I’ve got a cold—and it’s the worst timing. While everyone else is out soaking up Labor Day sunshine, I’m over here nursing a mug of tea and wishing my nose worked. The silver lining? My garden is overflowing with herbs, and they’re exactly what I need.

Many of the same plants we grow for flavor and beauty—mint, lemon balm, thyme, rosemary—also double as soothing, wellness-boosting remedies. With just a little chopping, steeping, or drying, you can turn that garden abundance into teas, steams, and blends that hydrate, comfort, and support your immune system.

This week I’m sharing four simple recipes (plus a handy cheat sheet) to help you sip the season and put your herbs to work.

What to plant, harvest, and tend in your early September garden.

Should you clear out all your summer crops to make way for the fall garden? Not necessarily. In Middle Tennessee, peppers, tomatoes, and eggplants often keep producing well into September. By interplanting thoughtfully, you’ll enjoy summer harvests right alongside fall greens and root veggies — creating a smooth, abundant transition from one season to the next.

After two whirlwind days of building, planting, and styling — and a down-to-the-wire finish — our 10'x10' raised bed garden display for the Tennessee State Fair came together beautifully. We filled it with not just lush plants, but also the personal touches that make a garden feel lived in: weathered tools, baskets of fresh veggies, and a perfectly styled potting bench. The judges loved it — and we’re thrilled to share that it won First Place!

What to do with sprawling tomatoes? Let them sprawl, cut off their unruly sprouts, or redirect them? Consider what option will work best for you.

By late summer in Middle Tennessee, your tomato vines may be ragged, your squash may be long gone, and you might feel ready to throw in the towel. But August is the perfect time to pull what’s struggling, give your soil a boost, and plant crops that will thrive in the cooler days ahead. In this week’s blog, I’ll walk you through clearing out disease-prone summer plants, refreshing your soil with quick amendments, and choosing fast-growing fall varieties so you can enjoy fresh greens, crisp roots, and flavorful herbs all the way into winter.

Mid-August in Middle Tennessee is the perfect time to savor the summer harvest, refresh your garden, and gear up for fall planting. From picking peak-season produce to tackling pests and planning for cooler weather crops, this to-do list will keep your garden thriving through the late-summer heat.

What to plant, harvest, and tend in your early August garden.