BROCCOLI

Broccoli, cabbages and cauliflowers are all easy to raise yourself from seed sown either in individual cell trays (like the ones pictured here) or in recycled plastic punnets or trays.

These brassicas take about 160 days from plot to plate... which means that if you get them in the ground now, they should be ready to eat before the white cabbage butterfly is at its worst in summer.

Or, you can speed up the process by transplanting punnets of seedlings from the garden centre.

These will already be at least a month old, which means they’ll be ready to harvest by late November.

Feed transplanted brassicas with liquid fertiliser and cover with netting if you have chooks or pukekos at your place, or they’ll attack those baby leaves. Keep watch for slugs and snails too –