How to extend the growing season

Plant Spinach, Chard and Kale this month and they’ll produce plenty of leaves for you to use from mid/late autumn and on through the winter months.

If you get Beetroot, Carrots and Sweetbell Turnips in the ground in the next week or so, they’ll be harvestable in October just before the first frosts – perfect timing for some roasts and stews.

There’s still time for a flurry of homegrown salad leaves – Summer Lettuces, Wild Rocket, Mizuna, and Frills Mustard will all grow quickly and can be used as cut and come again, so you can enjoy picking your own leaves for the next couple of months.

There are several things you can plant now to harvest next year – they will require minimum effort, and once planted can be more or less left to their own devices (especially if you mulch them to keep weeds down between now and autumn!) – Try Leeks, Parsnip, Celeriac and Broccoli.

There’s just time to plant out some Peas, Sugarsnaps and Dwarf Beans. With the warmer weather they will grow very quickly now and you should get to enjoy a good crop towards the end of August and September before the cooler temperatures settle in.