Tower Gardening in the Fall: How to Keep Your Garden Growing

Fall Tower Gardening Starts With Your Temperature, Not the Calendar

One of the biggest mistakes you can make when planning a fall garden is choosing plants simply because the calendar says September or October.

Fall growing conditions can be completely different depending on where you live.

In northern climates, nighttime temperatures may already be getting cold enough to slow warm-season plants or threaten frost. In much of Florida and the South, September can still feel very much like summer.

Where you live makes a huge difference. Fall in North Florida can bring frost while we're just getting into some of our best growing weather here in the Florida Keys. If you're growing in Florida, see our Florida Fall & Winter Tower Garden Planting Guide for crop ideas and planting guidance for North, Central and South Florida.

Here in the Florida Keys, for example, we're often still dealing with significant heat while growers farther north are already preparing their gardens for cold weather.

Cool-season crops such as lettuce, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, peas and many leafy greens become easier to grow as temperatures moderate.

Warm-season fruiting crops such as tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers may continue producing where fall remains warm, but they can slow dramatically as temperatures and daylight decline.

What Should You Grow in a Tower Garden in Fall?

Fall opens the door to some of the easiest and most productive Tower Garden crops, particularly once intense summer heat is behind you.

Depending on your climate, good fall choices can include lettuce, arugula, kale, Swiss chard, parsley, cilantro, dill, peas, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and strawberries.

But we already have an entire guide devoted to choosing fall crops, so rather than repeat that list here, head over to our Best Fall Crops for a Tower Garden guide.

You'll find crop ideas there along with links to our individual growing guides.

Your Tower May Need Less Water in Fall

If you've spent the summer topping off your Tower Garden constantly, one of the first changes you may notice in fall is that the water level doesn't drop nearly as quickly.

That's normal.

Plants generally use less water as temperatures fall and evaporation decreases. A large outdoor Tower that goes through water quickly during hot summer weather may suddenly go much longer between refills.

Don't keep adding water on your summer schedule just because that's what you've been used to doing. Check the reservoir and respond to what the plants are actually using.

Don't Forget About Rain

If your Tower is outdoors, rainfall can also affect the reservoir. Heavy rain can add water and dilute the nutrient solution, while dry and windy weather can still increase water use.

That's why checking the reservoir is more useful than following a rigid refill schedule.

For more on water quality, reservoir management and pH, see our Tower Garden Water Guide.

Do You Need to Change Tower Garden Nutrients in Fall?

You don't need a special “fall” nutrient.

Tower Garden uses the same Mineral Blend A and B throughout the growing cycle. What can change is the strength you're using based on plant age and growing conditions.

During extreme summer heat, we sometimes reduce nutrient strength to help reduce stress on plants. Once those extreme conditions have passed, established plants can generally return to the standard rate of 20 mL Mineral Blend A and 20 mL Mineral Blend B per gallon of water.

For young seedlings, start at approximately half strength.

Continue monitoring pH and keep it between approximately 5.5 and 6.5.

Our Tower Garden Nutrients Guide covers nutrient strength and adjustments in more detail.

Shorter Fall Days Mean Less Natural Light

Temperature isn't the only thing changing in fall. The days are getting shorter too.

An outdoor Tower that received plenty of direct sunlight in summer may receive fewer hours of light in fall and winter. The angle of the sun also changes, and nearby buildings, fences or trees may begin casting shade in places that were sunny a few months earlier.

Watch how the light actually moves across your growing area as the season changes.

Warm-Season Plants May Slow Down

Tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and other fruiting crops need considerably more light than most leafy greens and herbs.

If an established fruiting plant suddenly slows down in fall, don't automatically assume something is wrong with the nutrients. Temperature and reduced daylight may simply be changing how quickly the plant grows and produces.

Our Tower Garden Light Guide explains the different light requirements for leafy greens, herbs and fruiting crops.

Do Pests Go Away in Fall?

Unfortunately, no.

Pest pressure may change as temperatures fall, but that doesn't mean you can stop checking your plants.

Aphids, whiteflies, caterpillars and other pests can still show up. In fact, brassicas such as broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower and kale can be especially attractive to cabbage worms and loopers.

Get into the habit of looking at your plants regularly. Check new growth and the undersides of leaves, not just the tops.

Finding a handful of pests early is much easier than discovering an infestation after they've had a week or two to multiply.

For identification and treatment help, visit our Tower Garden Pests & Diseases Guide.

What Happens When Frost Is in the Forecast?

A Tower Garden is different from a traditional garden when cold weather arrives because the plants aren't the only thing you need to think about.

The roots are contained inside the Tower and the reservoir and plumbing are filled with water. Freezing conditions can therefore create problems for both the plants and the growing system.

If your area is approaching freezing temperatures, don't treat the Tower like an in-ground garden and assume throwing a sheet over the leaves is necessarily enough protection.

Depending on your climate and how long the cold weather is expected to last, it may be time to harvest remaining crops, move the Tower to a protected location or transition to indoor growing.

Moving Your Tower Garden Indoors for Fall and Winter

One of the advantages of a Tower Garden is that the end of the outdoor growing season doesn't have to mean the end of your garden.

You can move the Tower indoors and continue growing under LED grow lights.

Plan Your Indoor Location First

Before moving a full Tower, decide exactly where it's going. Remember that you'll need access to the reservoir, room around the plants and enough vertical clearance for the lights.

A Tower full of mature plants takes up considerably more room than an empty Tower.

Set Up Adequate Grow Lights

For indoor growing, run the Tower Garden LED grow lights for approximately 14–16 hours per day, followed by a period of complete darkness overnight.

Keep the lights approximately 6–8 inches from the tops of the plants and adjust them as the plants grow.

See Tower Garden LED Grow Lights →

Think About What You're Bringing Inside

This is also a good time to decide whether every mature outdoor plant is worth moving.

A huge tomato or cucumber vine that was perfectly manageable outdoors may be awkward beneath indoor lights. Sometimes it makes more sense to start fresh with lettuce, herbs or compact varieties that are better suited to your indoor space.

Our Best Compact Plants for Indoor Tower Gardens

Indoor Pollination Is Different

If you bring flowering fruiting crops indoors, you may also need to take over some of the work normally done by wind and pollinators.

Tomatoes and peppers can often be pollinated by gently vibrating or shaking the flowers, while crops such as squash may need pollen transferred between male and female flowers.

See our Hand Pollination Guide for more help.

Fall Is a Good Time for a Tower Garden Checkup

A seasonal change is a convenient time to give your Tower a quick once-over.

You don't necessarily need to completely disassemble and scrub the entire system just because fall arrived, but take a look at the things that are easy to overlook during a busy growing season:

• Remove dead leaves and old plant material.
• Check roots and remove old root masses from plants you've harvested.
• Make sure the pump is running properly.
• Check tubing and connections.
• Clean debris from the reservoir as needed.
• Inspect the Tower for pests before moving it indoors.
• Check cages, supports and trellises for large plants.

If your Tower needs a more thorough clean between crops or seasons, follow our How to Clean Your Tower Garden guide.

Fall Doesn't Have to Mean the End of Your Garden

For some growers, fall means switching from tomatoes and cucumbers to lettuce, peas and broccoli. For others, it means moving the entire garden indoors. And here in South Florida, fall can finally mean the beginning of some of our best outdoor growing weather.

That's the beauty of growing in a Tower Garden: you can adjust what you're growing as your conditions change instead of thinking of gardening as something that has to stop at the end of summer.

More Fall Growing Resources