From patio to plate

IN summer, my thoughts turn to fresh food and al fresco dining.

With patience and work, growing your own is one of the best ways to enjoy seasonal produce.

And the variety of ingredients, colour and flavours mean you’ll spend less time in the kitchen and more time outdoors.

Whether you have patio beds or a sprawling patch, start by feeding any fruit and veggies with organic fertiliser.

This adds nutrients to encourage healthy growth without the need for damaging chemicals.

The two most common types are granular or liquid, so pick the one that best suits your needs.

As well as feeding crops, make sure you keep them hydrated during dry spells.

Keep forgetting to water your garden? A drip irrigation system can save effort, time and money and ensures regular hydration.

Perfect for beds, baskets, borders and greenhouses, they deliver controlled watering directly to the roots at a much slower, more gradual rate.

Sow any maincrop vegetables this month, such as carrots, early peas, swede, lettuce, radishes, spinach and spring cabbage.

Harvest veggies as soon as they are ready – this way they will be fresh and taste their best.

Tidy strawberry beds and grow on new plants by pegging down the runners into pots – they look like little pieces of roots with few leaves.

Harvest any final raspberries, blackcurrants and gooseberries.

It’s not too late to grow salad leaves either. These cut-and-come-again crops are one of the easiest foods to grow and require little space.

For more tips about how to grow your five a day at home, head to diy.com.