Hi emt,
Beside what you have already mentioned, I have no new ideas except, maybe, to ask the Mid Atlantic forum. At times the VA forum is too slow. I hate to see good posts just languish. This fall I'll be planting young conifers,not many salad fixins. Hank

Virginia Tech has a planting calendar based on the first frost date. I found it very helpful.

Lettuce can be planted as late as early September in Virigia. It grows quickly, so it's not a problem.

I had great success with swiss chard, kale, tatsoi, and bok choy last year. The chard was my favorite. Chard and kale actually last the entire winter, and you can pull it out from under the snow.

Also try peas (snow peas and snap peas). Since you're in a container, get a bush type snap pea and use a tomato cage for a trellis. The taste is amazing -- no matter how many you planted, you will find you did not plant enough.

Carrots and beets also work well in fall or winter.

I'm also in Winchester and I was thinking of trying for some fast ripening bush beans (a squirrel beat me to most of my harvest this summer) for fall. I'll let you know how it goes. But I DO know that chard and lettuces love to grow in containers in this area in the fall.

I planted southern and English peas, and they came up over the weekend :D The cool nights seem to have helped it along. I'll keep everyone posted about their progress :)