The 3 key planting months/seasons

If you’d like to make your plot a little more productive, then one of the best things you can do is plant out your veg in three batches, in Spring (May), Summer (July) and Autumn (September/October). This is how our Mini Year Round Veg Patch and Family Favourites Year Round Veg Patch are designed and it works really well as it keeps things growing for seasonal harvests throughout the year without too much effort.

Depending on the size of your plot, you’ll benefit from a slightly different approach. We’ve created a strategy for small gardens (growing in pots/containers or a small beds in urban gardens etc) as well as one for larger gardens where space is not at such a premium.

SMALL GARDENS:

What to plant in May:

If you’re short on space, try to plant mostly quick growers in May – salad leaves, carrots, beetroot, spinach and chard, spring onions, peas and beans all crop fairly swiftly and you’ll be able to harvest the majority by July which will open up space for planting again.

What to plant in July:

Now you want to plant out things that will grow quickly that you can harvest in autumn. Plant out another batch of beetroots and carrots, some more lettuces, mini pop sweetcorn and a couple of brassicas (e.g. cavolo nero or purple sprouting broccoli).

What to plant in September:

In any gaps following your autumn harvest, you can now plant a whole range of winter salads and leaves, as well as spring onions and kale. This will all be harvested by April/May the following year and you can start all over again!

 

LARGER GARDENS:

What to plant in May:

Plant a mixture of quick growers (salad leaves, carrots, beetroot, spinach, chard, spring onions, peas, beans) and one or two slower growers (e.g. squash, calabrese broccoli, celeriac and leeks) where you can afford the space. The quick growers should be harvested in July opening up extra space for planting another crop. The slower growers will continue to grow, ready for harvesting in autumn and winter.

What to plant in July:

Once you’ve harvested in July you should have lots of space for planting brassicas like cauliflowers, cabbages and purple sprouting broccoli. You can also get more carrots and beetroots planted along with other root veg like turnip and swede. You’ll harvest these in late autumn/early winter.

What to plant in September/October:

In any gaps following your autumn harvest, plant up all your winter salads and leaves, as well as spring onions and various different kales. Don’t forget that you can happily plant your lettuces and leaves between rows of other veg, so it’s easy to squeeze more into your plot. Meanwhile you’ll still have leeks, parsnips and other slower growers like celeriac and broccoli from earlier in the year in your plot ready to harvest over the winter months before the following spring.

 

This is not a definitive list – there are loads of different things that you can plant in May etc. What we have tried to do here is give an idea of how you can mix up slow growers with quick crops at different times to maximise your plot productivity. Don’t forget as well that you can add more summer plants to your veg patch in June and August too – for June, follow the May guidelines as there is still plenty of daylight and your plants will catch up quite quickly. In August, you’re better to follow the July advice and plant brassicas etc.