Plus my favorite recipe for Southern collards.

by Susanna Hadley

One of the reasons I love gardening is because I can always look forward to the change of the seasons. Each one offers a fresh start. Some seasons bring abundance, while others bring more bugs than harvests, or more heat than rain. But no matter what, you always get the chance to try again. Gardening reminds me that there’s always another season ahead and always something to learn along the way.

Of all the seasons, fall is my favorite to garden. I’ve always loved September: the evenings turn cooler, kids head back to school, and football season begins. I don’t even follow a team these days, but my hometown had a strong high school program, and the sound of Friday night games always takes me back. While some people save their “fresh start” for January 1, mine has always been September.

Like many of you, this summer was a challenge for me. My time was spread thin between work and family, and my garden suffered under the hot sun and long stretches without rain. More than once, I stood at my kitchen window wishing I could spend a few hours outside, only to be pulled back to everything else demanding my attention. To be blunt, my summer garden was a flop. But even in that disappointment, I kept reminding myself: there’s always fall. I also learned that even a little work every day adds up. I don’t always need to carve out hours at a time in order to make progress.

This fall, I decided to focus on planting what I love to eat. Growing up, my mom usually cooked kale if she made greens, so collards weren’t on my table until I moved to Atlanta for college and started spending time in south Georgia with my now-husband. That’s when I fell in love with them. These days, collards are a staple at my table for dinners and holidays. I even save the pot liquor, that rich, smoky broth from the greens, and sip it from a mug once the last of the collards are gone. So this season, I dedicated two of my 4x8 raised beds to Southern Georgia collards, along with cauliflower, broccoli, bok choy, and lettuce throughout my garden. Clearing out my summer beds and filling them with fall crops felt like stepping into that fresh start I had been waiting for.

So while my summer didn’t give me much, my fall garden may give me more than I can eat. Hopefully I can share my collards with my neighbors as the weather continues to cool. Here’s one of my favorite ways to cook them:

Instant Pot Collards with Smoked Turkey

Ingredients

• 2 bunches collard greens, washed, rolled, and sliced into ribbons
  

• 2 smoked turkey wings
  

• 2 cups water + 1 tablespoon Better Than Bouillon (or 2 cups chicken broth)
  

• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
  

• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
  

• 1 tablespoon onion powder
  

• 1 small onion, sliced

• 1 tablespoon avocado oil
  

• Salt and pepper, to taste
  

• A few dashes Louisiana hot sauce
  

Instructions

1. Prep the greens: Wash collards thoroughly (multiple times—few things worse than sandy greens). Remove stems by folding leaves in half and pulling the stem from the back. Roll the leaves into bundles and slice into ribbons. Set aside.
   

2. Sauté onions: Slice the onion thinly. Set Instant Pot to sauté mode, add avocado oil, and heat for a few minutes. Add onions and a pinch of salt, cooking until tender.
   

3. Add turkey: Rinse and pat dry the smoked turkey wings. Add them to the pot with onions and sauté briefly.
   

4. Build the broth: Add water with Better Than Bouillon (or broth), vinegar, garlic powder, onion powder, hot sauce, and salt and pepper. Stir.
   

5. Cook the greens: Add collard ribbons, stir everything together. Don’t worry if it looks like too much — they’ll cook down. Close the Instant Pot and cook on high pressure for 45 minutes.
   

6. Release & serve: Let pressure release naturally for 10–15 minutes, then quick release. Taste and adjust seasoning. Add a few extra dashes of hot sauce before serving if you like heat.
   

Tip: Best enjoyed with cast iron cornbread on the side. Save the collard stems for homemade veggie stock!

Gardening teaches me that even when the outcomes are different than expected, there’s always another season.