Growing veg all year round

[CADS]

Hello,

I'm full of questions today, this is the last one I promise. Can someone point me in the right direction to find information on how to grow veg all year round. Is it even possible? I'm growing in containers and have just built a small raised bed but don't have a proper greenhouse just a couple of mini plastic greenhouses. Is it really difficult to grow veg during the colder months without a proper heated greenhouse?

Thanks
CADS

[Cutecumber]

Most winter veg is grown outside so it's perfectly possible to do it without a greenhouse. You need to choose particular vegetables and certain varieties which enjoy the cooler conditions. Tomatoes and courgettes are summer only, unfortunately!

The brassica family are the most famous of the year-round growers, but you could also have mature parsnips and carrots - they stop growing but you can leave them in place until you need them.

The problem you are going to have is that some of the winter veg is very big and most needs planting before the summer crops have finished, making it very tricky in a small space.

Take something I love as an example - Purple Sprouting Broccoli. It's brilliant because you can pick it all winter, but the plants are huge - about 1.5m high and 80-90cm wide. The good thing is that it survives just about any weather and you don't need many as it's quite prolific. The problem is that it needs sowing now - April/ May and planting August/ September at the latest. If you want to grow it you have to make sure there is space.

On the smaller side, you could give winter lettuces a try - they need a little protection, but are amazingly hardy. If you built a cloche for your raised bed you'd have a nice spot for them. You can pick leaves during the winter or let them grow and mature.

What are you planning on growing during the summer?

[Flummery]

If you are happy to find storage space (garage for example,) you can grow some of the squashes and pumkins and let them scramble around - they will happily flow over a path or patio. The fruits can be kept well over the winter months. We ate our last one about a month ago.
You can also grow some of the climbing french beans for drying. You can do this with a wigwam in a VERY big pot if you don't have space in the ground, although, for the ground area covered you do get bit yields and can have bean soups, stews, chillies etc all year round. If you have an early crop in - spuds, peas etc, you can sown some spring cabbage in July in pots or modules and put them in afterwards. Or you can follow spuds with leeks - sow them now and put them in the beds in July/Aug when the spuds are out. You don't need a greenhouse for any of this stuff.

Best of luck!

[momol]

Go for it CADS, I don't have any green house, yet I grow my vegetables year round. I am now still harvesting my overwintering vegetables (purple sprouting broccoli, some 10 more collards to go, rainbow chards, mache, last nero di toscano which is bolting and couple more radish ready to be harvest). My spring grown spinach is ready, the snap peas are blooming and so as the tomatoes .

You just have to choose the right type of vegetables seeds for the right seasons and you will have them all year round.

[Paulottie]

You can also overwinter many of the onion family for an earlier crop in spring. Plus leeks for using during the winter months. Kale is a classic. Celeriac stands well into the winter as do parsnips. Then you can store carrots in a sand box etc. Obviously a freezer is handy for storing stuff.

A hot bed might be an idea for more exotic stuff but I don't suppose your neighbours would like that...Heated cables are an alternative but I haven't seen them in years and probably an expensive idea. However you should definately knock up some cloches.

Really you have to be realistic as to being self sufficient with just a raised bed and a few pots(don't mean to be pessimistic) an allotment might give you more scope.

[Snadger]

It's all about careful planning, making sure you have one crop ready to go in just as you take another out. You also need to follow a crop rotation program and add plenty of organic matter to the soil or mulch heavily with organic matter.
Never have bare soil, always have a crop growing in it! It is possible to feed your family 52 weeks of the year and be self sufficient in fruit, veg, eggs and honey, but you've got to work at it and it won't come instantly!

[CADS]

Thank you everyone. I'm going to try PSB as I got some seeds with 'Let's grow veg" and have I think about what else I might like.
CADS

[JILLY JACKSON]

Was just going to ask the same question as Cads.Thanks.What variety of cabbage would be best to grow for winter?When do i sow it etc?

[Cutecumber]

You need to sow during the next month to have cabbages that will get to a size big enough to stand into the winter.

There are literally dozens of types - savoys or savoy crosses are very popular and hardy. Look for ones like Tundra, Celtic and January King, for example.