What's new, what's growing, what we're learning. Updates, guides and stories for people who take their garden seriously.
The long white shaft makes a good leek. How to plant leeks deep, earth them up right, and protect them from leek moth and onion fly with a net.
Twenty heads at once and then nothing? How small batches and loose-leaf lettuce give you an even harvest from spring into autumn, and why lettuce will not germinate in high summer.
Five bean types, five roles in the garden and the kitchen. Which bean goes in when, which one climbs, why they feed the soil and why you must never eat one raw.
Fresh from the bed, sweetcorn is a revelation. Why wind pollination means planting in a block not a row, how to harvest full cobs and what the milk stage tells you.
Three botanical species, four kitchen types, and why you must never eat a bitter squash. Which squash is good for what, how to grow it and harvest it ripe.
In December the garden rests under frost and snow. You harvest the kale for the holidays, shake the snow off the branches, feed the birds, and over a cup of tea let next year's garden start taking shape in your head.
In November the garden falls quiet. You pick the last of the hardy winter crops, protect pots and roses from the frost, put the tools away for the season and set the garden up for the wildlife. One last round before the great rest.
September has two sides: you bring in the apples, squash and last of the summer vegetables, and at the same time you lay the groundwork for next year with flower bulbs and a green manure. Here's how to ease into autumn.
