Emily and Maddie, Lafayette Students,  harvest a monster bunch of sweet winter carrots from their garden plot at LaFarm, The Lafayette College Community Garden and Working Farm!

Have you ever heard that veggies are sweeter if they have been harvested after a frost or light freeze?  Better yet,  have you tasted hardy fresh veggies touched by cool weather?  If you have you know it is not in your head nor is it a myth.  According to Lora Bailey from Kentucky’s Franklin County Cooperative Extension Service, “Cool temperatures slow the internal respiration of the greens, allowing more sugars to accumulate, making them slightly sweeter.”  This is also true for carrots, and other cold tolerant root vegetables…they taste sweeter because they are ramping up the extra sugar.

True also is that most good farming and gardening takes place about a year before the garden grows.  Check out this simple and great guide to succession planting.  So as you plan your seed orders this year don’t forget your second successions and get some seeds to take your garden into NEXT winter!