University of Florida

Planting in October

October marks the true beginnings of fall-like weather, so it’s time to start planting for the cooler months ahead.

Use these gardening suggestions based on the Florida climate zones to see what you can plant this month. Find out which region you live in by viewing the gardening region map.

North Florida

Bedding Plants: Opt for plants—such as petunia, shasta daisy, and digitalis—that can survive the upcoming cold temperatures.

Bulbs: Explore planting daffodils, including ‘Carlton’, ‘Fortune’, ‘Silver Chimes’, and ‘Sweetness’.

Herbs: October is the perfect month for a variety of herbs, such as dill, fennel, oregano, and sage, which can be grown from seeds or transplanted.

Vegetables: Choose cool-season crops, such as beet, carrot, Brussels sprout, and onion.

Central Florida

Bedding Plants: Remember, it’s time to start planting for the cold months ahead. Pansy, dianthus, and petunia are great for just that.

Bulbs: See agapanthus, rain lily, and other lily varieties flourish in your garden next spring or summer by planting them now. To really make the bulbs shine, add organic matter to the planting bed.

Herbs: Try planting parsley, sage, cilantro, chives, and garlic from seeds or plants this month.

Vegetables: Like north Florida, you can plant beet, Brussel sprout, carrot, and onion, which can grow and last throughout the winter.

South Florida:

Bedding Plants: Impatiens, alyssum, and dianthus are great choices for the fall/winter garden.
 
Bulbs: Like central Florida, try planting agapanthus, rain lily, and Clivia lily for spring/summer blooms. Adding organic matter to the planting bed can yield the best results.  

Herbs: Use seeds or transplants to grow dill, fennel, parsley, and cilantro this month. 

Vegetables: Plant cool-season crops, such as beet, English pea, carrot, and onion.

Adapted and excerpted from:

“Florida Gardening Calendar,”UF/IFAS Florida Gardening Calendar (Accessed 10/2014).

carrots

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