Kitchen garden

HARVEST

>> When harvesting beetroots, don’t throw away the leaves, which are great in salads and stir-fries. I often leave a few beetroots in the ground after harvest for a good supply of highly nutritious leaves. The roots, of course, are delicious roasted, pickled or grated fresh into salads.

>> Similarly don’t dig up cabbage, Brussels sprouts and broccoli stalks immediately after picking the main crop as sometimes they’ll sprout baby brassicas. Make sure broccoli heads are tightly closed when harvesting. If you wait until they open and produce flowers, they won’t taste as good.

>> Pip fruit such as apples and pears should be finishing their cropping season now, along with almonds, walnuts, macadamias and other nuts. Leave a few apples on the tree for the birds during the colder months or cut in half and skewer on a nail near the kitchen window so you can watch them feed.

>> Dig up yams for roasting, soups and stews. Leave tubers in the sun for a day or two to increase sweetness and reduce bitterness.

>> Related to the sunflower, Jerusalem artichokes are rich in potassium, iron and a variety of other nutrients. When tops have wilted, cut plants down to about 30cm and lift tubers by hand in autumn and midwinter. Use them instead of potatoes in soups, or roasted, pan-fried, puréed or simply boiled. Unlike spuds, they contain no starch so are very low in calories, making them ideal for dieters and diabetics.

>> Harvest celery by cutting off a few outside stalks at a time but don’t leave plants too long as stalks will eventually turn woody and become tasteless.