When the summer heat finally breaks in Central Texas, most gardeners feel like the season is over. In truth, October is one of the best planting months of the whole year around Austin, Waco, and San Antonio.
Cooler nights, warm soil, and milder weather give cool-season crops a strong start. One crop in particular rewards an October planting more than any other, and it asks very little of you in return.
1. Garlic
Ask an old-timer in the Hill Country what goes in the ground in October, and plenty will say garlic before you finish the question. It is a plant that rewards patience.
Tuck the cloves in now, and you can pull fat, papery bulbs in late May or early June.
The timing matters because garlic needs a stretch of cool weather to divide into cloves. Central Texas winters are mild, but they usually supply enough chill when the plant goes in from early October to mid November.
Planting too late may leave you with small, single-clove rounds instead of full heads.
Choose the right type and your odds go up fast. Softneck varieties like Inchelium Red, California Early, and Lorz Italian tend to handle Texas heat and mild winters better than most hardnecks.
Creole types such as Creole Red and Burgundy are also favorites with Texas growers, since they were bred for warmer regions.
Set each clove pointy side up, about 2 inches deep and 6 inches apart, in loose soil mixed with compost. Heavy black clay is common here, so a raised bed or mounded row can help prevent rot.
Top the bed with a few inches of straw or shredded leaves to hold moisture and calm temperature swings.
Through winter, water about an inch a week when rain is scarce, and feed lightly with a nitrogen fertilizer in late winter. Stop watering a couple of weeks before harvest, once the lower leaves start to brown.
Fun fact: garlic grown in your own bed often tastes sharper and richer than grocery store bulbs, which are usually shipped from far away.