Act fast and kohlrabi, kale and spicy mustard greens will be ready to harvest when the temperature drops
Even though my veg patch is – mercifully! – full of crops ready to harvest, there are some notable absences caused by this having been the year of the slug. Along with lettuces and the first round of climbing beans, brassicas have been repeatedly mown down by the molluscs that munch their way through my garden. I’ve missed the reliable sight and taste of kohlrabi, kale and the (usually) ever-reliable ‘Red Russian’ kale. Fortunately, we’ve reached the time of year when you can begin to sow seeds for an autumn harvest – one that will take you through the leaner winter months to next spring.
Kohlrabi is relatively straightforward to grow, and because the purple-skinned varieties are hardier than the paler ones, they are the best choice to sow now, as the temperature will be dropping by the time they’re ready to harvest. Cavolo nero is my preferred variety of kale and I’ll be sowing seeds in coming weeks so that the plants are a decent size by the time the days shorten and they stop growing. (Come the first signs of spring, they’ll be back in action and provide one of the earliest harvests of the new season.) The more tender-leaved ‘Red Russian’ kale and spicy mustard greens – including varieties such as mizuna – will also make it through winter as long as the plants are established before colder weather arrives.
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