What Should You Plant During the Winter in Florida?

With the temperatures hovering in the mid-80’s here in Jacksonville, you wouldn’t think that winter was just around the corner.  In fact, for the past couple of years, there hasn't been much winter to speak of in north Florida.  While the mild temperatures are the reason that so many Snow Birds head south for the winter when temperatures start to drop up north, for those who live here year around, it’s a time to take a second bite out of the apple, since Fall and winter offer a rare opportunity to grow flowers and vegetables in the Sunshine State.  In fact, some vegetables, such as tomatoes and lettuce actually prefer the cooler temperatures and don’t do at all well during the long, hot summer.  So, I thought I’d get you tuned into what works well for winter planting down south.

Sunflowers in the Sunshine State? – You bet.  The Beach Sunflower, otherwise known as the Cucumber-Leafed Sunflower, is native to the Florida coast.  This showy perennial grows anywhere from 12-24 inches tall and sports bright yellow petals with a reddish-brown central disk that tracks the sun like a natural solar cell.  This member of the Asteraceae family prefers sandy soil and bright sunshine.  Since the plant is drought resistant, some gardeners use them as border plants or ground cover that helps slow down erosion.

Other ground cover plants that winter well in Florida include zinnias that produce flowers of varying colors and sizes and lantanas that are particularly useful as borders or to surround trees.  Lantanas produce purple blooms and thrive on sunshine.  Consider planting some from hanging baskets since their vines grow from 18 to 24-inches long. Another vine that does well in Florida is honeysuckle, which will attract hummingbirds like a magnet.  Honeysuckle thrives in full sun and can be used to adorn fences and arbors.

Pink Jasmine not only looks good, it smells good.  – This vine can be used to dress up fences, arbors and lampposts with greenery topped with fragrant white blossoms that emerge from pink buds in late winter.  Each vine can stretch up to 20-feet and the glossy green leaves retain their color throughout the year.  Pink Jasmine prefers moist soil and partial to full sun.  

Picture Perfect Perennials – If you’re looking for a colorful background plants, consider Pentas.  They stand 2 to 4 feet high and produce pink, red or purple flowers during the Fall in north Florida.  In the southern part of the state, they bloom all year round.  A foreground perennial that does well here are impatiens that grow best in partial shade, reach a height of 12-inches high and produce a variety of colorful blooms and are irresistible to butterflies.

Flowering Shrubs – If you’re looking to turn your yard from humdrum to humdinger, consider the addition of flowering shrubs such as azaleas, camelias or bottlebrush.  Just make sure that you purchase evergreen azaleas like Florida Flame, since some native species drop their leaves in the winter.  When it comes to camelias, most Florida gardeners haven’t got a clue as to the plethora of varieties that are available.  Different camelia species grow to different heights and bloom at different times of the year.  They also have variable tolerance for sunlight.  Your best bet to find the right variety is to talk to a knowledgeable plant nursery owner or consult a local botany club.  If you’re looking for a border plant, bottlebrush could be just the ticket.  Named for its spiky fire engine red flowers, bottlebrush can be grown as either a hedge or a tree.  It thrives in full sun and is drought and salt resistant. 

Winter vegetable gardens? – In most parts of the country, trying to grow any edible outside in the winter is an exercise in futility.  Not so in Florida.  Everything from broccoli and Brussels sprouts, to cabbage, carrots, cauliflower and salad veggies can be grown here during the fall and winter months.

Broccoli Bonanza – Broccoli can tolerate freezing temperatures, which makes it such a great winter vegetable for north Florida.  It’s also one of the easiest winter veggies to sprout from seed.  Just make sure you purchase the appropriate varieties.  These include De Cico, Early Dividend, Early Green and Waltham.  For best results in north Florida, broccoli seeds should be planted in September.  It’s best to harvest the heads before their flowers bloom.  Once you snip off the heads, the plant will produce additional shoots that you’ll be able to harvest at a later date.

Brussels Sprouts – While these miniature cabbages grow well in north Florida, they should ideally be planted in August since the growing cycle takes 140 days to complete.  Brussels sprouts need plenty of room to sprout.  And sprout they do, up to 3-feet high.  So, give them a 2-foot radius all the way around when planting. 

Cabbage Patch – One of the easiest of edibles to grow, cabbage hates warm weather and shrugs off frost.  That’s the good news.  The bad news is that they typically take about 3-months between planting and harvest.

Crazy about carrots? – That’s good, since you can plant them from September to March.  The hardest part of the process is getting their seeds to sprout.  That’s because the ground in which they’re planted needs to stay moist for up to 3-weeks before they germinate.  They also take up to 2-months to mature.

Cauliflower can put up with a bit of frosty weather but can’t tolerate a hard freeze.  Their growing season extends from September to March.  They thrive in full sun and need regular watering and occasional fertilizing.  Make sure you space the plants 18-inches apart.

Salad anyone? – Lettuce, radishes, spinach tomatoes and greens galore all thrive in Florida during the Fall and winter months.  Just make sure you plant varieties that are Florida-friendly.

Lettuce: Florida Broad Leaf, Giant Red, Green Wave, Mizuna, Southern Giant Curled, Butter: Bib, Buttercrunch, and Tom Thumb rule the roost.

Mustard and Collard Greens thrive down here during the Fall and winter.

Tomatoes prefer temperatures between 65-85 degrees Fahrenheit.  That means that many gardeners throw in the towel when it comes to growing them during the winter.  But with the mild winters we normally experience in Florida, you can grow winter tomatoes, provided you select the right variety and cover the plants with clear plastic or grow them in pots that can be wheeled indoors if the temperature was to suddenly plummet.  I mean, what’s a salad without tomatoes?