The scents of added value

Welcome

Despite a slow start to the season, I think harvests of many veg have been good this year

TOP JOBS FOR OCTOBER

ESSENTIAL TASKS FOR YOUR VEG PATCH AND PROTECTED CROPS BY STEPHANIE HAFFERTY

STEP BY STEP PRESERVING THE GLUT: TOMATOES

STEP 1: With the final harvests of tomatoes coming into the kitchen, it is time to preserve as much of this delicious glut as possible

WATCH OUT FOR!

■ SLUGS: In warmer weather, slugs are still active and can nibble into cabbages and root vegetables

UNDER COVER

TAKE CARE CLEARING UNDER COVER CROPS

STEP BY STEP SOW OVERWINTERING PEAS FOR GROWING UNDER COVER

STEP 1: Sow overwintering peas under cover

CHECK FOR DAMAGE

Repairing tears in the polytunnel “A stitch in time saves nine” is true in the garden too

KEY JOBS FOR OCTOBER

■ Wilting, yellowing foliage is a sign that the sweet potatoes are ready to harvest

WHAT'S NEW?

ALL THE LATEST NEWS, PRODUCTS & FACTS FROM THE WORLD OF KITCHEN GARDENING

HAVE YOUR SAY

CONTACT US WITH YOUR LETTERS AND TIPS: TFLANAGAN@MORTONS.CO.UK

QUESTION TIME

GOT A FRUIT OR VEG PROBLEM? ASK KG FOR HELP

OUR PLOTTER OF THE MONTH

Meet another of the 12 creative and talented gardeners selected as our Plotter of the Month winners last year. Why not make a note to enter our new competition?

TOP PLOTTER COMPETITION

WIN A SHARE OF £1249 WORTH OF PRIZES YOU

DIGGING THE DIRT SOME ENCHANTED EVENING

John Holloway reflects on the magic of just ‘being’, something he experiences in his quieter moments on the allotment

PROTECT BRASSICAS

Wild autumnal weather can rock tall growing brassicas

ON THE PLOT WITH THE 3 Mudketeers

The KG team offer chat, tips and gardening gossip

GROW WITH BELLE

MAKE PUMPKIN STAMPS

A NEW kitchen garden

Autumn has arrived and Martin Fish is busy harvesting fruit and veg while Jill is serving up a tasty casserole of apple, pork and cider

ALL HAIL THE KALE!

Kale has a history as rich and textured as its famously curly leaves. Rob Smith, seed guardian, explains its fascinating background and recommends some top varieties

SUPERFAST COMPOST

You can’t help but get excited by a steaming hot compost heap, says Benedict Vanheems! Free, nutrient-dense goodness in the form of garden compost is among the very best amendments any soil could wish for. Here’s how to up your composting game

Become a thrifty organic gardener

Anton Rosenfeld from Garden Organic shares ways to reduce the impact of your gardening practices on both your wallet and the environment

FOR THE LOVE OF GARDENING

The famous Royal Welsh Show opened a new area this year, the Horticulture Village, and KG’s Stephanie Hafferty was delighted to be invited to participate in this exciting venture

GARDEN OF HORRORS

Instagrammer and YouTuber Jane Kelly takes a wry look at some of those garden pests and other problems that cause havoc on our plots

GROW YOUR OWN HALLOWEEN DECORATIONS

Becky Searle immerses herself fully in the Halloween experience, growing pumpkins and popping corn to make it a memorable occasion for herself and her children

Celebrating Apple Day

It is Apple Day this month, which celebrates one of our most popular fruits. KG’s Emma Rawlings suggests some events to visit plus what to consider when buying an apple tree and also a fun apple quiz to try

APPLE QUIZ

Just for a bit of fun can you work out the variety names of the following apples from the clues?

The compost troubleshooter

Good compost is the key to a healthy garden. In this extract from his new book, Charles Dowding, no-dig guru, offers some common sense solutions to keep your heap cooking and smelling sweet!

FROM LOCKDOWN TO LOOSE GARDENERS

Instagrammer Clare Louise McDonald started gardening during Covid to keep herself and her boys active. Since then she has never looked back, growing a wide range of vegetables and flowers

GROWING BIG WITH ONIONS

KG reader Jenny Winnard from Wigan is such a fan of the Instagram Grow Along that she decided to run one herself. Here she brings us the results of a ‘Mammoth’ onion ‘grow along’ she ran for followers of her Insta account

LEARNING TO GROW, GROWING TO LEARN

Primary school deputy head teacher Stephen Tunesi offers advice on how to start a school allotment and points to the many benefits pupils can expect to receive from growing their own

OUR TATTON PARK ADVENTURE

In January, Sarah Sanderson entered her nursery school to the RHS Tatton Park Flower Show to create a garden border. To her delight the entry was accepted; here’s what they did.

Giving two figs for the community

KG editor Steve Ott chats to Becky Rolf, founder of community allotments and driving force behind Hevingham Community Garden in Norfolk

FLAVOURSOME FRUIT QUALITY QUINCE!

Quince may not be everyone’s first choice but for fruit grower David Patch it’s an absolute must-have for his garden

PRUNING TOOLS

Pruning is one of those important autumn/winter tasks to keep plants in check and to foster healthy future growth. Here is a variety of products we’ve been putting to the test this month

ALSO IN THE KG SHOP THIS MONTH

FREE WITH EVERY ORDER An AGM award winner

GIVEAWAYS

TO ENTER OUR GIVEAWAYS VISIT THE KG WEBSITE: WWW.KITCHENGARDEN.CO.UK

GARDEN STORE

PLUS SUBSCRIBER SAVERS*

OCTOBER EATS AND TREATS

With apple, pumpkin and maincrop carrot on the menu, autumn has definitely arrived in the Anna Cairns Pettigrew kitchen. And here are six of her mouth-watering dishes for your delectation

FREE* FOR EVERY READER

9CM POTTED BLUEBERRY PLANT WORTH £9.99 ■ Delicious

CHECK OUT THESE FANTASTIC DEALS ON SUPER FRUIT TREES

CHERRY BUSH ‘PORTHOS’ – BEST SELLER The delicious