Wealden Times | WT165 | November 2015 | Gift supplement inside

sprouts etc). My reason is threefold: I have sandy soil – brassicas
like compacted clay, they are plagued by every pest that ever
walked, flew or crawled across my garden, and they cost so little
to buy in the shops. The exception to this is kale and also purple
sprouting broccoli. Providing you net it against pigeons – or get
ready with that gun – this tall-growing but delicious broccoli will
overwinter well and be ready to harvest at the end of March/early
April, when there’s nothing else on offer in the veg patch.
Winter protection
The one thing that many winter vegetables have in common is
that the growing period is long, so they must sit out there for
months and suffer the slugs and sparrows and other outrageous
misfortunes. Some, like the sturdy leek and other stalwarts
mentioned above are able to stay untouched for long periods,
but others (mainly in the wretched brassica family) are beset by
an endless stream of pests, diseases and conditions related to the
weather and the soil.
The weather
Most winter vegetables will tolerate low temperatures and frost.
Cloches are a good solution to help protect leafy plants like pak
choi, spinach, and stir-fry salads and greens. They’re also useful
for warming up the soil in the early spring. Fleece will keep
the frost at bay, and adding a cosy mulch will act like a winter
blanket for permanent crops like artichokes and help prevent
weed germination.
Pests
Netting is a good solution for pests above the ground, but be
careful that birds don’t get tangled up in it. Pests below the soil
can munch away happily without you noticing them and can
be a problem for root vegetables. Keel slugs – the small black
ones – burrow under the ground and eat things like potatoes,
parsnips and carrots. To avoid this you can lift root crops and
then store them in damp sand somewhere cool. There are other
more specific pests that may attack the roots of other vegetables.
Crop rotation is often a good solution for these, as it helps stop
the build-up of crop-specific pests and diseases.
FreeImages.com/Wong Mei Teng
Growing winter crops can be rewarding, and if you take a
few precautions and choose the right crops, they can be lower
maintenance than fair-weather vegetables – with all their whoosh
and weeds and wide-ranging pest proliferations. It might not
be as cheerful looking – especially once I make a dishevelledlooking
scarecrow with the face of Richard E Grant in my patch
for company – but there’s definitely some, at times grubby and
grim, satisfaction to be had. Turnip anyone?
Contact Jo for border designs, planting and garden advice:
01233 861149, jo@hornbrookmanor.co.uk
145 www.wealdentimes.co.uk
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