What to Plant in September
September closes the UrbanYardStead summer season and begins opening the door to Florida's cool-season garden. The days may still feel like summer, but beans, carrots, onions, radishes, squash, and turnips can now share the garden with the first waves of broccoli, cabbage, kale, collards, lettuce, and other fall vegetables.
September at a Glance
September is one of Florida gardening's great transition months. Summer flowers and heat-tolerant crops may still be thriving while the cool-season garden begins returning. Direct-sown root crops and beans can go into the soil, cool-season transplants can begin filling beds and containers, and gardeners can start preparing for calendulas and other flowers that prefer the cooler weather just ahead.
Vegetables
September brings variety back to the Florida Zone 9 vegetable garden. Warm soil still supports beans and squash, while shortening days allow root crops, leafy greens, brassicas, and other cool-season vegetables to begin returning.
Direct Sow in the Garden
Bush Beans
Sow directly into warm, well-drained soil. Bush beans mature relatively quickly and can provide another harvest as summer begins giving way to fall.
Pole Beans
Direct sow beside a sturdy trellis or other support. Their vertical growth makes efficient use of raised beds and small urban garden spaces.
Carrots
Sow directly into loose, finely prepared soil. Keep the surface consistently moist during germination because carrot seedlings begin very close to the soil surface.
Bunching Onions
Sow directly in beds, pots, or grow bags. Their narrow upright growth makes them easy to tuck into small spaces throughout the garden.
Bulbing Onions
Begin sowing varieties suited to Florida conditions. Provide loose, well-drained soil and keep young seedlings evenly moist as they establish.
Radishes
Sow directly in loose soil for a fast-growing cool-season crop. Small succession plantings can provide repeated harvests as temperatures moderate.
Summer Squash
Direct sow in fertile, well-drained soil. Give plants adequate room for airflow and continue watching closely for insects and disease.
Winter Squash
Sow directly into warm soil with plenty of sunshine. Give vigorous vines enough room to spread or guide them carefully around smaller growing spaces.
Turnips
Direct sow into loose soil for both edible roots and greens. Keep young seedlings watered while September afternoons remain hot.
Start for Transplanting Later
Broccoli
Establish healthy young plants as the cool-season garden begins. Keep transplants evenly watered while September temperatures remain warm.
Cabbage
Transplant into rich, well-prepared soil. Allow enough room between plants for developing heads and good air circulation.
Cauliflower
Establish young plants in fertile soil with consistent moisture. Cauliflower appreciates steady growing conditions as temperatures begin moderating.
Collards
Transplant into raised beds, containers, or grow bags. Collards are well suited to Florida's cool-season garden and can produce over a long period.
Kale
Set young plants into the garden and maintain regular moisture while they become established. Cooler weather ahead will increasingly favor growth.
Chinese Cabbage
Transplant carefully into fertile soil. Keep plants growing steadily with regular moisture as the garden moves toward cooler conditions.
Kohlrabi
Establish young plants in well-drained soil. Kohlrabi fits easily into smaller gardens because plants remain relatively compact.
Lettuce
Begin transplanting young plants with protection from severe afternoon heat when needed. Containers make it easy to move lettuce into a gentler location while temperatures remain high.
Endive
Transplant young plants into beds or containers with regular moisture. September marks the return of this cool-season leafy vegetable.
Beets
Young beet plants can be established as the cool-season garden begins. Both the roots and leafy tops are edible.
Brussels Sprouts
Transplant into a sunny location with rich soil. Give plants adequate room because they will remain in the garden for an extended growing period.
Strawberries
Begin establishing strawberry transplants during the North Florida fall planting window. Give plants full sun, good drainage, and adequate space around the crowns.
A September Garden Extra: Ground Cherries
Ground cherries, also called husk tomatoes, deserve a place in the Florida edible garden. Their small sweet fruits develop inside papery husks and can be grown much like tomatoes.
Ground Cherries
Plants started from seed during the July–August North Florida fall-starting window can continue establishing in September. Give plants full sun, good drainage, regular moisture, and enough room for their spreading growth.
Growing Tip
Ground cherries belong to the same family as tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants. Avoid repeatedly planting them in soil recently occupied by another member of the tomato family to help reduce pest and disease problems.
Flowers
September flowers still need to tolerate Florida heat, but the coming cool season is finally close enough to begin planning for a different group of flowers. Summer performers can continue while cool-loving favorites such as calendula wait just around the corner.
Direct Sow in the Garden
Zinnias
Sow into sunny, well-drained soil for continued late-summer color. Give plants adequate spacing for good air circulation.
Marigolds
Sow in sunny beds and containers. Marigolds provide strong color while the garden moves from summer toward fall.
Gaillardia
Establish in a sunny, well-drained location. Gaillardia tolerates heat and provides colorful daisy-like flowers for visiting pollinators.
Start for Transplanting Later
Calendula
Begin preparing calendula for the coming cool season. Calendula prefers Florida's cooler months, and October begins its recommended North Florida planting window. Seeds can be readied for planting as September comes to an end.
Angelonia
Establish young plants in sunny beds or containers. Angelonia can continue flowering while warm September weather remains.
Wax Begonia
Transplant into beds or containers with appropriate light, regular moisture, and good drainage.
Moss Rose
Establish plants in sunny, well-drained spaces. Moss rose remains useful where late-summer heat and rapidly drying soil are concerns.
Tropical Sage
Plant in sunny or lightly shaded areas. Tropical sage fits naturally into a Florida garden and supports visiting pollinators.
Torenia
Transplant into containers or partially shaded garden spaces where plants receive relief from intense afternoon sun.
Periwinkle
Plant into sunny, well-drained locations. Avoid waterlogged soil during periods of heavy September rain.
Milkweed
Establish appropriate milkweed selections in suitable garden areas where they can contribute to a pollinator-friendly landscape.
September Planting Notes
- September completes the UrbanYardStead Summer Season and begins the transition toward the Cool Season.
- Bush beans and pole beans can still be direct sown, while carrots, onions, radishes, squash, and turnips begin expanding the fall planting calendar.
- Broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, collards, kale, kohlrabi, lettuce, endive, and other cool-season crops can begin returning as transplants.
- Ground cherries started during the July–August seed window can continue establishing this month. Treat them much like tomatoes, providing full sun, good drainage, regular moisture, and adequate space.
- Long beans planted during summer may still be producing early in September. Continue harvesting tender pods while the vines remain healthy and productive.
- Calendula is almost here. It is a true cool-season Florida flower, so use September to obtain seed and prepare growing spaces for October planting rather than forcing it into the hottest part of the season.
- Strawberry planting begins during the second half of September in much of North Florida. Keep the crown at the proper soil level and provide good drainage.
- September can still be extremely hot. Newly planted cool-season vegetables may need extra attention to moisture and temporary protection from severe afternoon conditions.
- Heavy rain and tropical weather remain possible. Raised beds, pots, and grow bags should drain freely after storms.
- Begin refreshing growing spaces as old summer crops finish. Add finished compost where needed and prepare beds for the larger October cool-season planting.
- Continue watching for insects and disease. Warm temperatures and humidity remain favorable for many garden pests even though the seasonal transition has begun.