Life in a Cottage Garden with Carol Kleine episode 5 – Autumn: With the onset of September and October, the atmosphere in the garden is rich with the smell of ripening fruit and wood smoke.
It’s harvest time so there are seeds to collect, pricking out to be completed and tidying to be done. Carol’s daughters, Annie and Alice, are home to help decide the fate of the cankered apple tree. And Carol has to prepare the garden for visitors to her Open Garden Scheme day.
As October comes to an end the leaves turn russet, amber and scarlet and the garden is visibly going to sleep. Winter is on its way. Plantswoman Carol Klein shares with us a year in her garden at Glebe Cottage in North Devon.
Life in a Cottage Garden with Carol Kleine episode 5 – Autumn
How to grow cabbages
Cabbages come in different shapes, sizes and colours, and with a little planning it’s possible to pick them fresh nearly every day of the year. They can be used raw in salad or coleslaw, and as ingredients in soup, boiled, steamed or braised. Different types can be harvested throughout the year.
Cabbages need a sunny site and firm soil. Wherever possible, prepare the soil in autumn by adding well-rotted manure or garden compost and then leave it over winter to consolidate. Before planting cabbages, make sure the soil is well firmed by shuffling along the surface on your heels, then rake it flat. You should not grow cabbages in the same soil that you grew them (or other brassicas) the previous year.
Cabbages are best suited for growing in the open ground, but you could grow one or two in large, deep containers. They are not suitable for growing bags. Cabbages can be either sown directly in the ground outside, or in seed trays (and left outdoors). If you only want a few cabbages, it is best to sow in seed trays, then transplant outdoors. Use modular trays, and sow one seed per module.
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