Innehållsförteckning för December 2022 från Kitchen Garden

This month I’m delighted to announce a change that I believe KG readers will love. The January 2023 issue will arrive in the shops and on your doormats at the end of December and not, as in recent years, at the end of November. But fear not, there’ll be a special winter issue to tide you over! This will go on sale at the end of November, and will herald subsequent issues of KG being available at the end of the month preceding their publication date. This is in response to comments from many readers who told us they would prefer to receive their copy when all the advice and top tips are most relevant, rather than a month beforehand. It’s something we’ve wanted to do for a long time…

GRUBS: Many pests overwinter in the soil as grubs, ready to re-emerge as soon as things warm up again. Help insecteating birds help you by raking over the soil to expose the grubs at this lean time of year. Do this several times over the course of the winter. PARSNIP CANKER: Brown or orange patches starting at the shoulder of parsnip roots are signs of this fungus. Use up infected roots promptly. Canker is more likely on poorly draining or acidic soils, so lime your soil if it has a pH lower than 6.5 and add plenty of organic matter to improve structure. Consider cankerresistant varieties such as ‘Avonresistor’. WIND: Strong wind can cause havoc in the garden. Make sure crop covers are properly secured at the edges to stop…

Forced chicory is a gourmet delight and a welcome addition to the usual winter staples. The ‘chicons’ are produced when plants are grown in the dark, giving delightfully crisp, pale leaves. Lift mature plants after the first frost then trim the tapering root so it fits into a container. Cut back the leaves to within an inch of the top of the root. Pack three to five roots into a 25cm (10in) container of soil or compost, water, then cover with an upturned pot of the same size. Cover any drainage holes to exclude all light and grow on somewhere warm. The chicons should take about a month to appear.…

PRUNE GRAPEVINES Left unchecked, a grapevine can soon grow to block out much of the light entering a greenhouse. Train branches to form a permanent framework, stopping the growth once the desired length has been reached. Cut back side shoots to a couple of buds on mature frameworks. PINCH OUT SWEET PEAS Sweet peas make a stunning addition to the vegetable plot, bringing untold cheer, plenty of bees and free posies for the house. If you sowed some in the autumn, pinch out the tips just above a leaf joint. This will encourage side shoots to develop, giving sturdier, bushier plants. CHECK TEMPERATURES Is your heater up to the job? Check it has kept temperatures up to the necessary level by checking the readings on a maxmin thermometer. Keep paraffin…

I have been busy picking the last of the ‘Sungold’ and ‘Honeycomb’ tomatoes. The plants looked amazing, just dripping in little orange fruits. I had so many I had to make some soup. I was in a hurry so literally just washed them and threw them whole into a pan. Fortunately, the skins on these varieties are really soft so I didn’t remove them. I added a tiny bit of stock, garlic, herbs, some basil and chilli flakes. Once the tomatoes were softened I whizzed them with a blender and it was done. The soup was delicious. It was sweet but with a hint of heat from the chilli.…

GOING LARGE IN HARROGATE Harrogate Autumn Flower Show (September 16-18) was held in the grounds of nearby Newby Hall for a second year and was once again host to the North of England Horticultural Society’s Giant Vegetable competition, the Northern Championships for the National Vegetable Society and the North of England Horticultural Society. Despite a difficult growing year for many there was plenty on the show benches to impress, including the heaviest marrow weighing in at 56kg (more than 1231b) grown by John Simpson (pictured) from Durham. The heaviest potato was staged by veteran giant veg grower Peter Glazebrook from Newark while the heaviest onion weighed in at a whopping 7.4kg (more than 16lb) and was entered by grower John HandrahanCook of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire. OUR WINTER SPECIAL We are delighted…

The urge to sow and grow doesn’t go away just because it’s cold outside. You might not be able to sow seeds in the garden, so that’s a good reason to move operations indoors. It’s too early to start sowing for the next growing year, but the timing is perfect to grow some tasty microgreens and put your skills to good use. Think mustard and cress and you are on the right track! All you need is a bright window ledge, some seeds and a growing medium - these give you good starting conditions for growing some tasty little leaves for winter salad or sandwiches. Microgreens grow quickly and with delicious results. You can use up old packets of vegetable seeds or buy cheap ones in bulk. The secret is…

CHRISTMAS WREATHS GET GROWING It can be great fun making your own Christmas wreaths and if you can gather a few friends or family together to join in and have a drink or two, it is even more enjoyable. Being gardeners, we usually have a few materials we can forage from our plots including fruit and veg to add some edible festive touches. WHAT YOU NEED There are various wreath-making rings you can buy, including plastic ones which contain the green florist foam. Although not as environmentally friendly as some rings, they will last for years, and you can now also buy Bio floral foam which is more planet friendly and biodegrades over time. As a greener alternative you could use soft twiggy material from the garden such as birch…

Meet the L’Equip FilterPro Digital Food Dehydrator, a must-have in the arsenal of anyone who enjoys making their own healthy snacks and treats at home. It dehydrates everything, including fruit leathers jerky, fruits and vegetables, trail snacks and more (and can also be used as a yoghurt maker!). With a washable air filter included as standard, you can rest assured that airborne bacteria, dust and dirt are being kept out of your produce and with a free copy of The Dehydrator Bible included with every purchase, there has never been a better time to purchase the L’Equip FilterPro, for yourself or a loved one. Just make sure to use the code FP20 to get 20% off! Price £199 from www.ukjuicers.com…

(AGM is the RHS Award of Garden Merit. Under RHS garden trials these varieties performed particularly well) PLUS FREE TRIAL SEED, FREE SEED LABELS & SAVE AN EXTRA 20% ON ALL SEEDS IN THIS OFFER! Plan your spring planting now and save 20% on all the seeds in this offer. They include our most popular varieties, all chosen with taste, garden performance and disease resistance in mind. To take advantage of this 20% discount you must use offer code KG22DEC at time of ordering. What’s more, you’ll also get a packet of our FREE trial seed and FREE seed labels with your order. (Subject to availability). KEY: O = Outdoors, I = Indoors FREE TRIAL SEED CARROT ’TOPWEIGHT’ A great all-rounder with a crisp crunch and a lovely flavour, carrot…

Call the credit card and debit card order hotline on 0333 003 0869. Lines are currently open 8am-6pm weekdays, 9am-5pm weekends. Calls cost the same as calling 01 and 02 numbers and can count towards inclusive allowances on landlines and on mobiles. Please contact your phone provider for confirmation of your agreement. Only orders above £10 by phone please. Or send a cheque made payable to D T Brown Seeds to: Kitchen Garden DECEMBER Offers (KG22DEC), D T Brown Seeds, Unit 8, St Leger Drive, Newmarket Business Park, Newmarket, CB8 7DT. To qualify for the free item at least one item must be ordered. Orders will be despatched from early December onwards. Offer subject to availability, only one FREE collection per household. D T Brown reserves the right to substitute…

GET COOKING ROASTED PARSNIPS WITH CARROTS, ORANGE AND POMEGRANATE Bring out a touch of the Middle East with this dish of parsnip, pomegranate and za’atar. SERVES 4 Preparation time: 20 minutes Cooking time: 45 minutes 900g (2lb) small parsnips, trimmed and halved lengthways 400g (14oz) small carrots, trimmed and halved lengthways 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 4 thyme sprigs 1 orange, finely sliced 1 small pomegranate, halved 2 tbsp balsamic glaze 20g (¾oz) flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped 2 tbsp flaked almonds, toasted 1½ tsp za’atar spice 1. Preheat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas mark 6. 2. In a large roasting tin, toss the parsnips and carrots with 2 tbsp oil and the thyme sprigs. Season and roast for 25 minutes. Add the orange slices, tossing gently to combine…

DIVIDE RHUBARB Reinvigorate tired rhubarb by dividing clumps while dormant. Dig up the entire crown then use a spade to break off outer sections containing a bud. Replant into enriched soil. SUPPORT SPROUTS Wind gusts can topple lanky Brussels sprouts. Earth up soil at the base of the stems then tie them to sturdy canes for support. Pick sprouts as they mature from the bottom up. MULCH ASPARAGUS Cut back old asparagus stems to the ground then remove any weeds. Give plants a boost for next season by mulching around them with garden compost. HARVEST ARTICHOKES Continue harvesting Jerusalem artichokes as needed. If you don’t want them to grow back next spring, take care to meticulously harvest every last tuber. MAKE MORE COMPOST There’s something wonderful about winter’s pared-back beauty.…

Seize the lull in gardening jobs to get ahead for next season. Weed around established fruit trees, bushes and canes then follow up with a mulch of compost or wellrotted manure. Lay this about 3-5cm (1 -2in) deep, taking care not to bank it up against the main stem, which may cause it to rot. Check all wires, ties and stakes. Hammer home loose stakes until rigid once more and replace damaged ties or wires. Loosen ties that have become tight, so they don’t dig into the bark. Begin winter pruning fruit bushes such as blueberries, gooseberries and currants. Prune out dead and diseased wood, as well as branches that are crossing or congested. Up to a third of older blackcurrant branches may be removed to encourage vigorous new growth…

STEP 1: Consider lifting root crops such as carrots. Most will happily stay in the ground for most of the winter, but this does leave them vulnerable to slugs. Soil may also freeze solid at some point. Prepare dug-up roots for storing by first twisting off the foliage. STEP 2: Pack roots into crates or breathable boxes of sand or old compost. This should be slightly damp so the roots don’t shrivel, though not overly wet or the roots may rot. Layer the roots in between sand/compost, taking care that they do not touch. STEP 3: Maincrop potatoes store well in paper sacks or net bags. Store them in a cool, dark place, such as an outbuilding or garage. Lift them off the ground to prevent rodents reaching them. Check…

Well it’s not called perpetual spinach for nothing. Not actually a spinach (just tastes like it) but a beet, a variety of chard in fact. This single row has been growing all summer and autumn next to a row of Swiss chard. As perpetual spinach is winter hardy, it’s a green-leaved crop that will see you through those dark winter days. It’s versatile - add it to curries, soups, stews, stir-fries and omelettes - and it’s full of nutritional goodness, including plenty of vitamin C. Don’t lift them whole, just treat them as a cut-and-come-again plant, harvesting the outer leaves first. Pretty much pest and disease free too, it’s a beet that keeps on beeting!…

ON THE PULSE I write to say how great the Finding Your Pulse article in the October issue was - so much information and advice. I have grown some beans for drying this year but have since learnt nowhere near enough, so next year I will grow many more. I have been looking into varieties and have the help from your article. I think this is more important than ever with the cost-of-living crisis and climate change, we need to make beans a staple in our diets. Good for us and good for the environment. A truly great read, so informative and much learnt. Jenny Hulett, Leicestershire STEVE SAYS: If you’d like to know more about this topic you might like a book called Growing Beans, A Diet For Healthy…

GET GROWING ROB’S PLOT DIARY As it gets darker and colder this month, there are gardening jobs to be getting on with in the shed or the warmth of the house. If you use heated propagators, heat mats or grow lights, now is the best time to check that they are all in good condition and work well, especially if they have not been used for a few months as mice can damage the wiring. After making sure everything is in good order and working well, make sure the equipment will still do the job for you in spring and look at replacing any that’s damaged. By ordering new equipment early in the month you’ll beat the Christmas postal rush, plus you can always drop hints to family and friends…

GET GROWING Many keen readers of KG magazine may remember that last year I grew wheat on my allotment plot in order to make my own flour for bread. Well, this year I have been growing winter field beans on the same plot. Here’s how I got on. Now, I imagine you’re wondering why I decided to grow field beans. Well, the crop I really want to grow is wheat, and in order to get a high enough protein content in the grain for making good bread, the wheat requires lots of nitrogen. Beans are well known for fixing nitrogen in the soil, so they seemed the logical answer as an environmentally friendly way of providing lots of the nitrogen that the wheat will require. Although the beans may not…

GET GROWING NEW DISCOVERIES ‘CELINE’ If you’re looking for a colourful and productive dwarf French bean, look out for ‘Celine’. We started these off in cell trays in mid-May under cover before transplanting into raised beds in mid-June, though they are also ideal for growing in large pots if you are short of space. Of the four plants one of them had a bad attack of aphids but the others were untouched. They cropped weii, far into September. You need to stir-fry or steam to keep the colour. (Available from Suttons) ‘RHAPSODY WIGHT’ Garlic is generally such an easy crop to grow and if it’s not in your kitchen, there’s something wrong with your kitchen! Originating in south-west France, ‘Rhapsody Wight’ is a softneck variety which we planted in December and…

AUTUMN SOWING SEED COLLECTION (10 PACKETS] Autumn is a key season for sowing a whole host of seed varieties. It’s the perfect time for preparing your plot in readiness for the following spring. The soil is still warm enough for early sowings of broad beans and peas while leafy crops such as pak choi, lettuce and herbs can be overwintered in a cool greenhouse. This bumper 10-packet collection of seeds to sow now includes one packet each of: broad beans ‘Super Aguadulce’ and ‘The Sutton’, pea ‘Douce Provence’, pak choi ‘Blizzard’, lettuce ‘Winter Density’, cauliflower ‘All The Year Round’, cress, basil ‘Mixed’, coriander and oregano and is worth £26. *Just pay £4.95 p&p WORTH £26…

STEP 1: With fruit now dormant for winter, there’s no better time to plant new trees, bushes and canes. Bare-root specimens are a lot cheaper and will have plenty of time to settle in before spring. Dig out a planting hole big enough to allow the roots to spread out. STEP 2: Hold the fruit tree or bush in one hand then backfill the dug-out soil with the other, shaking the tree as you fill to ensure there are no pockets of air. With the hole refilled, firm it in thoroughly from the top, treading it down to give good contact between roots and soil. STEP 3: Finish off with a mulch. In very sheltered positions you may get away without staking trees. In more exposed locations, hammer in a…

Steve has been saving seeds from the late-season fruit of his heritage tomato varieties and non-F1 squash, salad leaves and lettuce. He feels that it’s nice to be involved in some small way in maintaining our seed heritage and of course he likes to save money too (something we often notice when it’s his turn to buy a round!). Steve’s top tip: spice jars are great for storing small seeds - they often come with a top that aids even sprinkling of the seeds. Tony is making sure his spring cabbages are well protected from pigeons. He’s sown a bed of ‘Wheeler’s Imperial’, a heritage variety dating back to Victorian times and named after a George Wheeler of Warminster in Wiltshire. Tony’s hoping to start harvesting them from March onwards.…

Hi! I’m Belle and I’m here every month to share lots of fun activities for you to do at home, on your own or with your family Seed paper decorations are really fun to make and great for the environment! They’re super easy and could be a great present to give to your family and friends. After they have been on the Christmas tree, you can plant your decorations too! Growing beautiful herbs and salad leaves to eat, or perhaps wildflowers for bees and butterflies to enjoy later in the year. YOU WILL NEED: Scraps of paper 1 packet of salad leaves, basil or wildfiower seeds 2 cups of warm water Sieve Mixing bowl Tea towel Wooden spoon Selection of small cookie cutters Kitchen paper Ribbon Biodegradable glitter - optional…

YOU & YOUR PLOT Get in touch by post, email or via our Facebook page: Facebook.com/kitchengardenmag STAR QUESTION WINS £25 VOUCHER UNSIGHTLY BULGE What’s happened to our sweetcorn? Jacci Gooding, Warwickshire STEVE SAYS: Your sweetcorn is suffering from a disease called sweetcorn smut. This is fairly common and spreads as spores in the wind from other sweetcorn crops and maize grown for forage. It is especially common in hot seasons; heat I favours it and spores spread more easily in the dry air. The infected kernels, leaves or stems swell and eventually burst, releasing many black spores which can persist in the soil for up to five years, so it would be a good idea to dispose of this safely, well away from yours or other crops and to rotate…

NO-DIG GARDENING GET GROWING In the chill of a December morning, I am in the back garden harvesting parsnips and herbs for our festive meals. The beds around me are filled with beetroot, kale, cabbages, leeks and other vegetables to see us through the winter months. Through the gate into the orchard, I can gather perennial kale from under the apple trees, and in the polytunnel there’s an abundance of winter salads, herbs, Asian leaves, brassicas and spring onions to gather. Stored in our stone cottage there are squashes on shelves, sacks of potatoes under the stairs, jars of dehydrated tomatoes, bunches of dried herbs and bundles of garlic. In the freezer I’ve stashed bags of runner beans, home-grown ratatouille and roasted summer veg to add to winter produce. Nine months…

OUT AND ABOUT A visitor to the little town of Buckingham in North Buckinghamshire may well happen upon a hidden gem of edible horticulture, nestled in the Heartlands Park by the River Great Ouse. This small but beautiful oval of land, the Buckingham Edible Woodland, is home to around 78 different varieties of edible and useful trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants. This is an edible space that is open to all who wander into it, and visitors are welcome to the fruits, nuts, shoots and leaves that grow there. It is now a low-maintenance project designed using permaculture forest garden principles to sustain itself. This is all due to the hard work of Transition Buckingham members and locals that pitched in to help from 2014 onwards. Originally, said founding member…

Kitchen Garden magazine BEST BUY 2022 NATURAL CITRUS CLEANER FOR THE GARDEN AND GREENHOUSE Made from extracts of citrus, this solution will clean greenhouses, tools, pots, bird baths and other garden items. No need to remove plants from the greenhouse as it will not harm them. One bottle contains 500ml, equivalent to 20 litres of solution when diluted. GARDENING NATURALLY www.gardening-naturally.com TEL: 01285 760505 PRODUCT CODE: NCC1 PRICE GUIDE: £13.49 * Prices correct at time of publication KG VERDICT This is a very good all-round cleaner with a pleasant lemony odour and safe for children, pets and wildlife. With the potential for 20 litres from 500ml, it offers good value for money and can be used for a range of objects from greenhouse to pots to tools. Excellent for a…

BEETROOT ‘BOLTARDY’ SAVE 20p Britain's favourite beet! Sow early with little fear of bolting. Will yield well in most soils. Sow: March-July (O) Harvest: June onwards. Code: 10227 (350 seeds) Was 99p, now 79p CARROT ‘NANTES 5’ SAVE 20p The classic early carrot, good for ‘little and often’ sowings. S: March-August (O) H: July-October. Code: 13245 (2000 seeds) Was 99p, now 79p CAULIFLOWER ‘CLAPTON F1’ - SAVE 92p The club root-resistant cauli. Late summer and autumn cropper, gives heavy, dense, white heads. S: February-May (I) May-July (O) H: July-October. Code: 14965 (30 seeds) Was £4.59, now £3.67 COURGETTE ‘DEFENDER F1’ - SAVE 60p Very early to crop (sometimes in June) and has good disease resistance. S: March-May (I) April-June (O) H: July-October. Code: 20672 (10 seeds) Was £2.99, now £2.39…