NOVEMBER - EDIBLES - IT’S ALL GO!

TIME TO HARVEST...

Peas, and to maximise their flavour pick when the pods are plump & bright green. Early morning is the optimum time when the sugar content is at its highest. Harvest regularly to encourage further pod production. Lettuces will be available all the time if planted regularly. Harvesting herbs not only gives you culinary essentials but encourages them to go on producing, rather than going to seed. Strawberries will also be coming on stream now.

TIME TO PLANT...

Last of the seed potatoes (put comfrey leaves underneath potato planting – rich in potash, & as they break down they release nutrients to encourage healthy tuber development), , tomatoes, pumpkins, lettuces regularly, beans in warm soil, next crop of peas, beetroot, spring onions, all herbs including basil in a warm protected site. Plant brassicas for summer – cabbages for coleslaw, broccoli for brilliant raw broccoli salad, cauliflowers for crudites/dips.    Tip: some lettuce varieties do better than others in the heat – buttercrunch, tom thumb, drunken woman’s fringed head, cos, & red sails.    Tip: potatoes & tomatoes are both members of the same nightshade family so avoid planting them close together to minimise disease spread.

Plant blueberries now – highbush varieties are mostly self-fertile but produce better if planted with other highbush varieties. Southern highbush & rabbiteyes need fewer chill hours in winter than northern highbush. Some Rabbiteyes are self-fertile but benefit from cross-pollination.

TIME TO SOW...

Next crop of peas, radishes, dwarf beans, runner beans, sweetcorn, courgettes, leeks, lettuces every month, carrots, parsnips, rocket, dill, basil & most herbs. Most of these can be grown in seed trays but sweetcorn, carrots, radishes & beans are best sown straight into the soil. Tip: protect newly planted beans from birds with 1m long wire cloches.

TIME TO FEED...

Pretty much everything to make the most of the growth rate being at its maximum. Feeding on the 1st of the month allows you to keep track of your feeding regime and reduces the chance of over-feeding. For all container growing use either a liquid feed or a slow release to avoid root burn.

TIME TO PROTECT...