Southeast Crop Farming: Top Fall Crops

Learn more about Southeast crop farming and the top ten fall crops. 

Fall is a season that is typically associated with the harvest, however there are also certain crops that are grown during the fall months in Southeast. The Southeast’s warmer weather and typically mild winters mean plants can grow longer. These fall crops truly extend the growing season to nearly year-round in some states.

Here are some of the most popular Southeast crops to plant in the fall.

Top Ten Fall Crops in the Southeast

1. Grapes. Grapes are commonly known as a crop of California, but Southeast locals will tell you their wineries predate California’s wineries by 100 years. An article on SouthernFoodwaysAlliance.org explored how both muscadine and the muscadine variety called scuppernong—both native grapes—and vinifera grapes—traditional wine-making grapes—are being grown in Virginia, North Carolina, and Georgia to feed a wine scene that is turning heads. Similarly, a growing seedless table grapes trial sparked an interest in the high-value horticulture crop, according to a SoutheastFarmPress.com article.

2. Cucumbers. Cucumbers are generally grown in Georgia and Florida, with South Florida boasting three growing seasons for cucumbers that span from September to March.

3. Sweet Potatoes. Sweet potatoes are a major crop in the Southeast. In an earlier blog on Sweet Potatoes in the Southeast, we shared that North Carolina leads the nation in sweet potato production, followed by Mississippi, Louisiana, and Florida in the Southeast. Harvesting spans late summer into November, depending upon the state and the variety being grown.

4. Kale. Due to high consumer demand, kale is increasingly being grown all over the Southeast. Kale planted in the fall is said to have a sweet, nutty flavor missing from its spring counterparts.

5. Pecans. Pecan harvests typically begin in October, especially in Georgia, which grows the most pecans of any state.

6. Persimmons. Both types of persimmons are grown in places in the Southeast. Diospyros kaki persimmons are grown in Florida, and Diospyros virginiana—the American Persimmon—is grown in limited quantities in the Southeast, according to an Agricultural Marketing Resource Center (AMRC) report on persimmons.

7. Peppers. Bell peppers and other types of peppers are commonly grown in the Southeast, such as in Georgia and Florida. Peppers are usually available through October, but growing them in a greenhouse means they can be available year-round.

8. Pumpkins. Pumpkins are a fall favorite, but they are grown in limited quantities in the Southeast due to their disease and insect sensitivity in humid climates. You’ll find limited pumpkin patches on a smaller scale throughout the Southeast.

9. Squash. A variety of winter squash, such as butternut, acorn, spaghetti, buttercup, and hubbard, re-enter the market in October, starting in Florida. Georgia follows, rounding out the main Southeastern states growing gourds, according to an AMRC report on squash.

10. Apples. Apples can be grown in every state, and 29 states grow them commercially. In the Southeast, Virginia leads the region in apple production and is 6th in the country, according to the Virginia Apple Board.

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