Innholdsfortegnelse for October 2020 i Kitchen Garden

The days are shortening and it’s time to gather in those harvests. It has been a great year for fruit for many of us and with that in mind our resident expert David Patch has some top tips for harvesting and storing your fruit crops. Organic gardener Ben Vanheems looks to the future as he explains how to go about planning and planting your own orchard – no matter how small your garden. Gardening author and no-dig expert Stephanie Hafferty celebrates autumn by harvesting sweetcorn and squashes and planting garlic, broad beans and peas. Home gardener Rob Smith is also busy, this time planting shallots for an early crop next year. We aren’t all blessed with the perfect spot to grow our crops so if you garden on a windy,…

WHAT TO DO IN OCTOBER ■ Sow dwarf varieties of broad beans under cover to give you a crop of fresh bean pods early next summer. ■ Keep harvesting crops such as dwarf French beans, spinach, baby carrots, chard, pak choi and salads through autumn. ■ Garlic grows well under cover and if planted directly into the soil now it will be ready to lift next May and June. ■ Tomatoes will carry on ripening until the weather turns cold and to help with air circulation remove the foliage up the stems. ■ Sow pea seeds in shallow trays or pots of compost for a crop of pea shoots, which taste delicious. PEPPERS STILL RIPENING UNDER COVER For me, one of the main advantages of having a polytunnel is to…

Send us your tips and pictures and if your letter is published you will get a £10 Dobies voucher. If you are lucky enough to have yours chosen as our Star Letter you will get a £25 voucher. Your voucher will be sent out with a Dobies catalogue and you can choose to spend your winnings on a fabulous range of seeds, young plants and gardening sundries. You can get hold of a copy of the catalogue now by phoning 0844 701 7625 or go online to www.dobies.co.uk You can reach us by letter, email or via our Facebook page: FACEBOOK.COM/KITCHENGARDENMAG Email your letters to tflanagan@mortons. co.uk or post to Letters, Kitchen Garden, Mortons Media Group, Media Centre, Morton Way, Horncastle, Lincs LN9 6JR…

Crisp, fresh, juicy apples are delicious, especially that first bite, but do you know what makes them even tastier? Covering them in chocolate! It’s one of my favourite autumn activities, especially near Halloween. Have a think about what design you would like to create; perhaps plain chocolate with sprinkles, a spooky pumpkin or a spider’s web? To make your sweet and spooky creations, you will need: ■ Apples – do you have any home-grown ones stored away safely? ■ Lolly sticks or skewers ■ White and/or milk chocolate ■ Bowl ■ Spoon ■ Food colouring ■ Icing pens ■ Sprinkles (optional) ■ A lollipop stand or a tray with greaseproof paper STEP 1: First, take your sticks or skewers and gently pierce through the core of your apples about 3cm…

A problem affecting apples, pears, plums, cherries, nectarines, peaches and some other tree fruit. Look out for brown rot from midsummer onwards WHAT IS IT? Brown rot is a fungal disease which occurs where the skin of the fruit has been damaged in some way, often by punctures caused by birds or insects (wasps, codling moth), scab or cracking. Initially airborne, spores can be transferred by birds, insect, rain splash or fruit-to-fruit contact. SYMPTOMS Soft brown patches appear and will eventually spread across the surface of the skin and to the flesh inside. Distinctive white pustules form in concentric circles around the infected fruit, which will either fall from the tree or remain on it in a ‘mummified’ state. WHAT YOU CAN DO With no fungicides for home gardeners the…

Deciding what to plant in your miniature orchard is perhaps the most bewildering (though exciting!) part of the whole process. Bear in mind these key points. THE RIGHT SITE: Look for trees suited to your location. Most like a sheltered spot in full sun, but some trees like Morello cherries can thrive on a shady wall. It may seem obvious but choose what you actually like to eat. POLLINATION: Some trees require a pollination partner that flowers at the same time. Check with nurseries that the varieties you want to grow are compatible or opt for self-pollinating trees instead. PRUNING: Espaliers and fans require more pruning than cordons. If you want to keep things simple, stick to cordons or Ballerina forms, which will also enable you to squeeze in a…

Gardening is a happy mix of simple techniques, all of which are designed to help you get the best from your flowers, fruit and vegetables. It’s significant that many are aimed at improving the soil and mulching has to be the most simple, but important of these. Although an ancient technique, mulching has recently come to the fore thanks to the rise in popularity of no-dig gardening, which relies on thick layers of organic matter to improve the soil from the top down. WHAT IS A MULCH? A mulch can literally be any material that covers the soil. Good organic mulches will: ■ Retain moisture ■ Suppress weeds ■ Reduce nutrient loss due to rainfall ■ Add organic matter (humus) to the soil as it breaks down ■ Add nutrients…

I’ve said it myself many times in my articles – ‘choose a sunny, sheltered spot to sow your seeds’, but what if your garden is at the top of a hill, on the side of a slope, flat fenland, near the coast or in a wind tunnel created by the lie of the land or by tall buildings? The chances are that you can’t move your garden, so how can you improve the situation? WINDBREAKS Windbreaks can take many forms, from a row of tall trees such as poplars (a shelterbelt) to fences or netting. On an allotment or even in your own garden, you may have to leave the planting of tall trees to others and anyway, not many of us have the space for such things. Even fences…

‘GRISELLE’ – Regarded by discerning cooks as the ‘true shallot’ and also known as the French/grey shallot, it originally grew wild in Central Asia. A purplish-pink flesh (and a grey skin) is a feature, along with a fine strong flavour favoured by cooks, particularly alongside beef. www.mr-fothergills.co.uk ‘JERMOR’ – Jermor is an excellent shallot with a great taste. With a slightly elongated shape, this copper-coloured shallot has a great tasting, pink tinged flesh. It is no wonder why ‘Jermor’ has won the RHS Award of Garden Merit, with each bulb producing six to eight bulbs at harvest and being a perfect addition to any meal. Grown in Brittany, in the heart of France’s main shallot growing region, these superb certified varieties are of superior quality and will produce an outstanding…

The future of our allotment sites is constantly under threat of being reclaimed for building houses. Against all odds, ‘Brummie’ Dave Taylor took up the challenge to save a failing and near derelict 75-year-old allotment site and return it to its former postwar glory….. What inspired you to take on the challenge of resurrecting Longmeadow Crescent site? I was approached by the chairman of Birmingham and District Allotments Confederation (BDAC) to join him on an assessment of the site. The complete area was appalling, covered in brambles and discarded rubbish (so far we have cleared a total in excess of 20 tons). My first impression was that it was beyond salvaging; on closer inspection the vegetation was above head height. However, after my third visit I decided to take on…

Flame-coloured trees, falling leaves, the scent of bonfire smoke in the air, crisp mornings and all the golden gorgeousness of October means that autumn is here. October weather is usually rather eccentric: I start the day wrapped up in hat, jumper and wellies, and by early afternoon can be gardening in shorts and a T-shirt, but the returning chill around 4pm, and evenings drawing in, reminds us that summer has passed. My windowsills are filling up with winter squash curing before storage, letting the skins firm in a light space, which helps them to last for longer. Every surface in the kitchen – shelf, hook, and most of the floor – is filled with jars of preserves and baskets of produce waiting to be stored. Chillies, herbs and fancy coloured…

1: Find a container to put the toilet rolls in such as a seed tray or a small plastic tray that used to hold food. It can help to tie some string around the group of tubes to secure them. 2: Fill the tubes with multi-purpose compost and gently prod the compost with your fingers but only to remove the excess air, don’t ram the compost hard. Add a bit more compost until you reach the level you need to sow the seed. After sowing the seed add compost to the appropriate depth for the seed. Water well.…

Aubergines are no longer confined to traditional Middle Eastern and Greek dishes such as moussaka; they have now been discovered by a whole new audience to become a popular ingredient for a rising number of vegetarians and vegans and a meat substitute for those wishing to reduce the amount of red meat in their diets. Recipes abound for aubergine steaks and crispy aubergine bacon, and they are a common ingredient in many gluten- and dairy-free dishes. Modern varieties are also helping the humble aubergine to shine; older types needed a very long season and a Mediterranean summer to come good, but those bred for the UK climate offer a better guarantee of success in all but the chilliest summers. Still, they are best grown in the coddled warmth of a…

Once the fruit has been prepared simply place on a baking sheet lined with parchment and place in the quick-freeze part of your freezer. After a couple of hours, when the slices are frozen through, take out of the freezer and transfer into a freezer bag. Label and return to the freezer. Of course, there are many other ways of preserving your harvest, from juicing and jamming through to bottling and drying. And let’s not forget that perennial favourite, steeping in alcohol! Make it your mission this autumn to try at least one new way of storing your fruit harvest – and when the stores are full of fruit which has been flown halfway around the world, you can enjoy the produce of your own garden.…

Please submit the following questionnaire with your pictures. You can fill it in online at www.kitchengarden.co.uk;or answer the questions on a Word document attachment or in the body of an email; or submit them by post on a piece of paper if you prefer: 1. Do you have an allotment or a veg patch in your garden? 2. How long have you been growing veg? 3. Why did you start growing your own produce? 4. Do you share your plot with other people? If so, who, and what do each of you tend to do on your plot? 5. Your favourite gardening celeb is going to film your plot next week. Given a blank cheque, what would you do on your patch before he/she arrived? Or would you not do…

Autumn is a mellow time of year, when the amount of daylight slowly fades. Trees show red and orange hues as leaves fall to the ground, and fungi push their fruiting bodies into the air. Little cyclamen flowers dance under trees and perform, their purple or white petals giving a soft cover to the ground. In the flower beds there are rudbeckia and echinacea cone flowers offering regal beauty, while Verbena bonariensis still pokes through to dominate the flower patch. Bees gather the last of the rich nectar, buzzing freely. Stone fruit like plums and damsons are ready for picking by September. With the hotter spring and summer weather we are getting now, some fruit will already be dropping, so get out and collect them before they decay. Pears, apples…

10 MINUTE JOB PICK BRUSSELS SPROUTS Harvest sprouts when they are firm and fresh. Do this whether varieties are meant to crop now or closer to Christmas. You can’t hold a crop back, but you can enjoy the bounty at its best. SOW PEAS Round-seeded varieties can be sown now and they are hardy enough to stand through an average winter. You may need to cover rows with a cloche in the coldest weather. Sow direct or start seed in pots if waiting for space to clear. PICK UP AND TIDY We often get strong winds in October, so be sure to gather up any loose bits and pieces that might blow away. Walk round the garden and collect empty pots, buckets etc. before they end up on a neighbour’s…

RASPBERRY RUMINATIONS COMPO: In my years of being employed I have just grown my raspberries in a thicket. Now I have retired and have time I have them in rows. So to put posts and wires in and tie them or not? GEOFF: I tie in the summer fruiting ones as the canes are there all winter getting bashed about by the wind. Quicker to tie them in with a long piece of string working along the row rather than short bits for each cane – also keeps them spaced out better. The autumn fruiting ones I grow between parallel wires and try and tuck them in as they grow to stop them flopping everywhere. I also have some cross wires to divide them into sections so they don’t all…

A CLUTCH OF CAULIFLOWERS We have been growing our cauliflowers ‘Clapton F1’ for a few years now, with the idea of using successional sowing. In the winter they are in the greenhouse and the other times in the veg plot. Our harvest in the greenhouse was in May. They were sown over a period of six weeks, so we thought we would be harvesting one each week over six weeks but they all came together in one week. Jim Watts, Leicestershire Emma Rawlings, deputy editor Kitchen Garden magazine EMMA SAYS: I think there may be a couple of factors here. Firstly you are using an F1 variety (an excellent one), but these are bred to be ready all at the same time to make large-scale harvesting easy. A week between…

Think of an orchard and you probably picture halcyon days sat under gnarled old apple trees fringed by wildflowers. I imagine Cider with Rosie, scrumping, the innocence of youth and the beguiling buzz, flutter and industry of pollinators like bees and butterflies. It’s a beautiful vision, but the traditional orchard we all love isn’t exactly efficient on space, least of all practical for the average garden. Today’s gardens are small, and who has the time to prune and pick via stepladder? But does this mean a variety of tree fruits are out of the question though? Of course not! You just need to get on and plant yourself a miniature orchard. DWARFING EXPECTATIONS Plant breeding and the advent of dwarfing rootstocks has opened up the world of tree fruits to…

■ Apply when the soil is moist. ■ Consider adding a dressing of general fertiliser prior to mulching. ■ It is important to apply a good, deep layer at least 3-4cm (1-2in) deep, more if possible to properly suppress weeds. If supplies are limited don’t be tempted to try and spread it too far or the effect will be lost. ■ Be prepared to hold down lightweight mulches such as cardboard and ground cover fabric with ground pegs, stones or similar. ■ Remove perennial weeds prior to mulching. Small annual weeds should be smothered by a thick layer of mulch.…

Shallots are closely related to the onion, yet have a more refined flavour and celebrity following, with TV chefs waxing lyrical about how they impart a better flavour to soups, stews, casseroles and even salads; yet I grow them because to me they taste sweeter and aren’t as fiery as some of their larger onion relatives. Normally grown from sets, shallots reward you with not one large bulb, like an onion set would; they actually produce between six and 12 smaller-medium sized bulbs, which are the perfect size to use whole in dishes or chop a few to add to your cooking. This means that you don’t have half an onion stinking your fridge out because you haven’t used it all! There are also differing shapes when it comes to…

There are a few problems which shallots can experience which are the same as regular onions, including: ALLIUM LEAF MINER – The female flies lay eggs and the subsequent maggots feed off the foliage and bulbs. Use affected bulbs as soon as possible or cover the bed with Enviromesh to keep them out. ONION WHITE ROT – The base of the bulb shows a white fungal growth with black dots. Clean tools well and don’t grow alliums in that bed for 7-10 years. ONION DOWNY MILDEW – This causes damage to leaves and bulbs, especially in damp conditions. Increase space/ airflow between plants and destroy affected leaves.…

You need: ■ Ripe tomatoes (not F1 hybrids, they are unlikely to come true to type) ■ One glass jar for each variety of tomato ■ Muslin or kitchen roll ■ Elastic bands or string 1. Squeeze the juice and seeds from the tomato into a jar, already labelled with the tomato variety if you’re saving more than one kind. 2. Cover with a piece of muslin (or kitchen roll) and tie on, to prevent any bugs from falling in. 3. Leave for three days to ferment. It will start to look mouldy and disgusting. 4. Rinse using water several times, strain through a sieve and spread on a dish to dry. Remember to label the dish with the variety. 5. Once dry, store in a labelled paper envelope until…

CLIVE FROM EAST LINCOLNSHIRE The greenhouse that my father constructed in the 1960s had been out of use for a couple of years but with glass that could be refitted and Veggiemesh where I hadn’t got replacement glass, it was back in service and planted up, likewise with the cold frames. I had no compost in stock, but the material that is produced via the regular compost heap is good stuff that, once riddled and some fertiliser added (I only had a bag of Growmore), is serving me well for the large tomato rings in the greenhouse. To be fair, this compost mix has been used previously as half and half with bought compost. The tomato seed was courtesy of KG; ‘Red Cherry’ and ‘Alicante’, sweetcorn, carrots, marrows, butternut squash,…

‘MONEYMAKER F1’: A popular variety with long black fruit and a purple calyx. Early cropping and can be grown outside. (Kings Seeds) ‘BLACK BEAUTY’: Strong plants growing up to 1.2m (4ft) and producing large glossy purple fruits, ideal for making ‘facon’ (aubergine bacon). (T&M, Suttons Seeds) ‘PINSTRIPE F1’: A compact variety ideal for patio tubs and containers with silvery green leaves and plenty of attractive small purple striped fruit. (T&M) ‘EARLY LONG PURPLE 2’: Long fruit up to 25cm (10in) long and perfect for making ‘facon’ (aubergine bacon). (D T Brown) ‘ROSA BIANCA’: An heirloom variety producing round fruit with attractive mottled pink skin. The flesh is creamy and less bitter than some. (D T Brown)…

WOMEN’S MUCKSTER II MID WELLINGTON Endorsed by the Royal Horticultural Society, these mid-height garden boots are 100% waterproof with a fleece lining. They have a high-traction outsole for a secure footing in wet or muddy conditions and come with a pull tab for easing them on and off. THE ORIGINAL MUCK BOOT COMPANY www.muckbootcompany.co.uk * Prices TEL: 01452 886201 correct at PRODUCT CODE: N/A time of PRICE: £90 publication KG VERDICT These are an excellent pair of boots in a very attractive blue-grey check design. They are very comfortable and will keep your feet warm in cold weather. The outsole offers excellent grip and being 100% waterproof will keep your feet dry in the wettest of weathers. If you want to, you can also roll down the sides to…

GOLDEN PLUM COMPOTE Save any last plums going spare to make a batch of beautiful coloured compote. Sweet and tart, it’s perfect served with yoghurt or on warm porridge. MAKES 700ML Preparation time: 25 minutes plus one hour resting Cooking time: 20 minutes ■ 1kg/2lbs 3oz golden plums ■ 300g/10½oz sugar ■ 1 vanilla pod 1. Halve the plums and discard the stones. Place the fruit in a large, heavy-based saucepan with the sugar and vanilla pod. Cover and leave for an hour. 2. Place the saucepan over low heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved completely. Increase the heat to a rolling boil for 10 minutes, stirring gently to avoid the mixture catching. 3. Once the plums have broken up slightly, but some are still holding their shape,…

PLANT AUTUMN ONION SETS STEP 1: Choose a bed that was enriched for a previous crop such as potatoes. Raise beds up into ridges to provide better drainage if the soil gets waterlogged in winter. Add a scatter of powdered seaweed if you have it. Top with hydrated lime to adjust pH on acid soils. STEP 2: Choose firm autumn planting onion sets that haven’t started to sprout. Small sets may be less prone to bolt than larger ones. Plant sets into the ground at 15cm (6in) apart along rows that are 30cm (12in) apart. The top of each set should be just below the soil’s surface. STEP 3: Cover with fine mesh crop-cover raised up on a frame. Secure edges down well. This allows rain through while protecting the…

Our Star Question winner will receive vouchers worth £25; the writers of all other questions printed will receive a £10 voucher. They can be redeemed against any products in the latest Mr Fothergill’s catalogue, which will be sent out with the vouchers so you can choose from the massive range of quality products, including seeds and garden equipment. To receive a free catalogue, call 08453 710518 or visit www.mr-fothergills.co.uk Email questions to tflanagan@mortons.co.uk or post to Question Time, Kitchen Garden, Mortons Media Group, Media Centre, Morton Way, Horncastle, Lincs LN9 6JR. Please include your full address on letters and emails. We do not publish full addresses.…

Most fruits can be grown in containers. Use a container that is at least 25cm (10in) in diameter and be prepared to re-pot trees annually as the roots fill the pot. The diameter of the final container could be around 50cm (20in). Use a soil-based compost, such as John Innes Number 3. Container-grown trees are more dependent on you. Water regularly in dry weather and, once the nutrients in the original compost have been exhausted, feed with a liquid fertiliser designed for fruit trees or apply a slow-release granular fertiliser.…

KG YOUTUBE CHANNEL CARING FOR GRAPES  Steve chats to Clumber Park’s former head gardener, Chris Margrave, about caring for grapes. At Clumber Park they are grown in the glasshouse on the rod and spur system. This consists of rods with laterals growing off them, alternately spaced either side. When the grapes are flowering, the leaves are pinched out two leaves beyond the flower. The trick is to keep the vines under control, a case of pinching out secondary growth so that plenty of air and light can get to the fruit. Grapes can be grown outside, up a trellis or south-facing wall. When it comes to harvesting, colour is not necessarily a true indicator of their ripeness – you will need to taste a sample. KG WEBSITE WAYS YOU CAN…

If your plot is prone to flooding in the winter months, I would go for a spring planting variety or start the sets off in 9-10cm (3½-4in) pots instead. Starting the sets off in pots is very easy and allows you to move them to a warmer or drier spot if needed; it also allows you to put them in a cold frame and stop the birds having a go at them. I like to use the large trays you can get from the garden centre that hold 18 pots (they usually have a large bin of them by the checkout to recycle) as it makes it easy to move multiple pots in one go. Plant the sets exactly the same way as you would in the ground and they…

Salsify (Tragopogon porrifolius) is perhaps one of those crops that’s either not that well known or not often grown. It certainly might not be the first go-to root crop to grow when it has carrot and parsnip to compete with, but to my mind it is well worth the effort. I’m always disappointed with myself for not growing enough of it! Salsify has long, tapering (quite ‘hairy’) roots with a light brown skin and creamy coloured white flesh within, reminiscent of oyster in flavour, which is why it is sometimes referred to as ‘the vegetable oyster’. I like it roasted best of all – you can boil it too but it will lose some of its flavour (which is quite subtle to start with anyway). The flowers and young leaves…

I love peas, but don’t have loads of space to grow them so the variety needs to be both compact and productive. ‘Valido’ from Johnsons Seeds promised to be both of these things so I decided to give it a go. This variety is a maincrop which can be sown from March to June for harvesting from late May to September and is said to have really good resistance to powdery mildew. This means that it should be good for later harvests when the disease is prevalent and often brings a premature end to pea crops. SOWING I sowed my peas on March 7 in guttering sections filled with a peat-free multi-purpose compost. Growing in guttering avoids root disturbance when planting and can be cut to a length to match…

Throughout history we have always reached back to nature in times of crisis, feeling the soil, breathing in the air and growing our own food. The reason why is something I am investigating in detail for future writing, but for now… did you know that there are some incredible organisations alongside my own across the UK which provide gardening therapy all year round – teaching people how to grow their own food, giving support to those in need and helping rebuild lives? Unfortunately, I can’t mention every single charity and social enterprise, otherwise it would need its own book, but I wanted to highlight a few that are doing fantastic work and I’m sure would appreciate your support, especially as they had to close during the pandemic. Many have open…

I know in these turbulent times, deciding when to pick your fruit won’t exactly class as a first world problem. However, it is one of life’s more infuriating little moments when you buy a supposedly ripe and ready to eat avocado, only to get home and discover you could knock nails in with it. So how are we going to ensure that our homegrown produce is picked at its absolute best, ripened to perfection and ready to enjoy or store for future use? Well, there are some basic guidelines about what to look for, and armed with this knowledge you can be certain to harvest at the right time. After all, this is the highlight of the year for the fruit gardener – finally getting the chance to savour the…

All readers who are picked to be our Plotter of the Month will receive a great bundle of prizes worth an amazing £444 each! To enter, simply fill in a questionnaire and send us 10 pictures of your plot and a picture of yourself and/or others that help you tend to it. You can submit an entry for an allotment, a veg patch in your garden or even a few veggies grown on a balcony or patio in a few pots. All are welcome as it is your passion for growing that we want to share with other readers – so pristine plots and perfect veg are not necessary. BIG PLANTER WORTH £153 This brand new planter from The Posh Shed Company comes in nine sizes. It has fully…