Time for a bit of late season sowing - Self Sufficiency

Although the leaves are starting to fall it dose not mean that the growing season is over just yet. There are still lots that can be sown in the garden at this time of the year to give a good autumn and spring harvest.

Now we will need to give some of the crops some protection from the weather either in the form of a cloche or fleece. A polytunnel would be the ideal situation but i don't have the luxury of one of them so a cloche it will have to be.

September is a great time to so seeds as the soil is still warm from all the summer sun (yes we did get some this year) and in a normal year we would have some rain to help them along not this year though. My intital plan was to sow a whole raised bed dedicated to all the winter crops this idea has been put on hold as i have not built the bed yet so plan B it is. Fill up any gaps i have left i the raised beds i did build and the rest in the open borders and some in pots that can be brought in the greenhouse when the worst of the weather hits. This way their (fingers crossed) should be something to pick in even the worst weather conditions. From the pots in the greenhouse a window ledge will be just as good if you have not got a greenhouse. What are we going to sow well it's mainly leafy salad crops that we can pick at through the winter months. It is also a good time to sow one last crop of green manure i am planting Phacelia from T&M which should over winter keeping any weeds suppressed. Phacelia is very good for adding humus to the soil and is good on poor dry soils which is ideal fro the bed where i intend to grow it. This will be dug in during the spring leaving enough time for it to rot down before needing to replant the bed.The green manure is just scattered over the bed, raked in and given a water.

Making drill for some Raddish

All the other seeds we will just make a drill with the how and thinly sow with the exception of the Lettuce as i prefer to so in module trays and then plant out. This is so i have some to plant in pots and the rest takes it's chance under the cloches.

Seeds sowed today where.

Lettuce 'winter density' from Suttons
Spinach 'Bordeux f1' from T&M
Spinach 'Perpetual' from Mr Fothergills
Land cress 'American' from Suttons
Mizuna from Mr Fothergills
Raddish 'bacchus f1 from T&M
Raddish 'French breakfast 3' from Aldi
Rocket 'Cultivated' from Moles
Lambs Lettuce 'Valeriana' from Franch
Pea 'Douce de Provence' from Suttons 

This will not be the last of the sowing for this year we still have Broad beans and another sowing of Peas. These will be sown in November to over winter so we have a (fingers crossed) good harvest in the spring. We will also be starting on the micro veg soon although they can be grown all year round. I do prefer to save them for the winter months when there is not a lot else to pick at and you also get to keep sowing seeds which is the best bit.