This has been a fabulous year for fruit, certainly in my neck of the woods. No late spring frosts, long hot sunny days – boughs have been bent over with the weight of fruit. The only issue has been the lack of water, which has meant that fruit has been smaller than normal, especially if the crop wasn’t thinned in May. Otherwise, it’s been a bumper year for many home fruit growers.
Now, there are worse gluts to be faced with (yes, I’m thinking of you, courgettes) but what to do with this precious bounty? By all means share with neighbours and friends – just don’t give them all the best fruit – but it’s also the year to investigate keeping and preserving your harvest to see you through the winter.
PICKING AND STORING
Knowing exactly when to pick your fruit isn’t as straightforward as it may appear. There are many factors at play which can alter the best date for picking by many weeks – weather, geographical location and aspect – but the most important is the tree variety. There are varieties which are at their best in August, whereas a late-season variety such as ‘Winston’ may need until late October to be picked. If you know which variety you have planted, a quick search on the internet will give you a rough idea of what stage of the season it is likely to be ripe. If you have inherited a tree, I’m afraid the first year will be a bit of a trial run, but hopefully, you will be able to have an educated guess!
Denne historien er fra December 2022-utgaven av Kitchen Garden.
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Denne historien er fra December 2022-utgaven av Kitchen Garden.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
SEPTEMBER SPECIALS
This month, with sweetcorn, figs and blackberries on the menu, Anna Cairns Pettigrew is not only serving up something sweet and something savoury, but all things scrumptious
FLAVOURSOME FRUIT AUTUMN RASPBERRIES
September - is it late summer or the start of autumn? David Patch ponders the question and says whatever the season, it's time to harvest autumn raspberries
SOW GREEN THIS AUTUMN
Covering the soil with a green manure in winter offers many benefits and this is a good time to sow hardy types, says KG editor Steve Ott
A HISTORICAL HAVEN OF FRUIT AND FLOWERS
KG's Martin Fish takes time out from his own plot to visit a walled garden in Lincolnshire which has been home to the same family for more than 400 years
RESTORING THE BALANCE
The phrase regenerative gardening is often heard in gardening circles, but what is it? Can it help you to grow better veg? Ecologist Becky Searle thinks so, and tells us why
WASTE NOT, WANT NOT
Garden Organic's Anton Rosenfeld shares his expertise on using compost made from green bin collections with handy tips on getting the right consistency and quality
Celebrating Organic September!
In this special section we bring you four great features aimed at improving your crops and allowing nature to thrive
SEEING RED
Do your tomatoes have a habit of remaining stubbornly green? Or perhaps you're lucky to enjoy lots of lovely fruits - just all at once. Either way, Benedict Vanheems is here with some top tips to ripen and process the nation's favourite summer staple
NEW KIDS ON THE BROCCOLI!
Rob Smith is talking broccoli this month with a review of the different types available and suggestions for some exciting new varieties to try
A NEW kitchen garden
Martin Fish is getting down to plenty of picking and planting on the garden veg plot, while Jill is rustling up something pepper-licking good!