Greenhouse crops
IF YOU LEAVE YOUR GREENHOUSE empty each winter, it’s time for a treat! Plant winter salads this autumn and you’ll be astonished at the quantity of leaves you’ll enjoy right through until spring – it just takes a bit of juggling. The main conundrum lies in the fact that in September most greenhouses are cropping well with tomatoes and chillies and it would be a crime to haul everything out now. But if you can find space, whip out the seed trays and modules and get sowing. By October you’ll have stout young plants ready to go out into newly cleared greenhouse beds. There are loads of crops that grow well under cover from autumn onwards – you can try everything mentioned in winter salads (left) as well as chard, chicory, Chinese cabbage, coriander, pak choi, komatsuna and tatsoi. If there’s space to sow direct in September, sow beetroot and carrots to grow slowly over winter for a super-early harvest next spring. Keep plants well ventilated over winter, clear away any old leaves promptly to stop disease and be careful not to overwater. Make regular pickings of outer leaves and you’ll get repeated harvests until plants run to seed in spring.