Episode 674: The Growing Season Isn’t Over Yet!

After what has been a really difficult summer for growing, things are finally starting to feel like they are turning a corner. The rain has returned, the gardens are coming back to life and there is still plenty of time to grow more food before winter.

Kitchen Garden Update

Richard's kitchen garden has been a hive of activity this week. With the change in weather making a real difference. He is finding that tomatoes, aubergines and chillies are still producing. While spent crops are being cleared away and replaced with fresh compost from the HotBin and wormery.

Richard has also been working on my idea of using herbs around the edges of the beds, with sage, rosemary, thyme and chives helping to create a useful border while providing plenty of herbs to use in the kitchen.

There is still plenty that we can sow in September too.Richard has been sowing short, stubby carrots, winter lettuces, mustards, mizuna, pak choi and spring onions, along with chard and spinach in the potting shed.

With so many empty spaces appearing at this time of year, Richard is determined to keep filling them and make the most of what is left of the growing season.

Allotment Update

Things are finally starting to move again on the allotment after what has been a very difficult summer.

The return of the rain has brought the grass back to life. Which is good news for the compost heap as we finally have some much-needed green material. It also feels like a sign that we can get back to gardening properly.

Richard has been planting out brassicas including spring cabbage, kale, winter cauliflower and purple sprouting broccoli, particularly into beds that have become available after harvesting potatoes.

There are also plenty of leafy greens going in, including lettuce, chard, spinach and oriental greens. Along with herbs such as parsley, coriander and chervil.

And for those empty beds that aren't going to be planted with vegetables, green manures are once again proving their worth. Richard has been sowing winter tares and field beans to keep the soil covered and working over the winter, ready for next year's growing season.

There's also been plenty of general tidying up to get the allotment back on top of things after the drought.

Recipe of the Week

This week's recipe from Chef Scott is a little unusual but turned out to be a surprisingly good combination.

We're making a late summer tomato and grape bake with a herby crouton topping.

With plenty of tomatoes and grapes available at this time of year, this is a great way of using some of them up. The tomatoes and grapes were roasted with onion, garlic, olive oil and fresh herbs before being finished with crispy homemade croutons.

We served ours with pasta, although there are a few options for changing it up, including adding feta or a little balsamic.

From the Podding Shed – The Bees

Finally, we head back to the podding shed for an update on my first season of beekeeping.

Unfortunately, it looks like I won't be taking any honey for myself this year. The extremely dry summer has meant that the nectar flow hasn't been strong enough, although the bees have still been producing honey.

The priority now is making sure the colony has enough food to get through the winter. I've removed the super and the bees currently have around five and a half frames of honey in the brood box, so we're getting close to where we need them to be.

The bees are also now receiving their Varroa treatment, and over the next few weeks I'll be making sure the hive is secure and continuing to monitor the colony.

It's been a fascinating first year of beekeeping and, despite the costs involved and the 45-minute drive each way to the apiary, I'm already thinking about adding more hives next year.

The Growing Season Isn't Over Yet

If this difficult summer has left you feeling like giving up on the garden, September is a good time to get back out there.

There are still plenty of crops that can be sown and planted, empty beds can be filled with winter crops or green manures, and there is still plenty of food that we can grow before winter arrives.

So let's make the most of what is left of the growing season.

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The post Episode 674: The Growing Season Isn’t Over Yet! appeared first on The Veg Grower Podcast.



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