Enjoy a groaning table jam-packed with delicious, seasonal food this Christmas
It is so satisfying to be able to look around the Christmas table, packed full of homegrown veggies, a real culmination of all of your hard work throughout the year, enjoyed by friends and family, and it can save you some cash, too! This does need a certain element of forward planning to make sure everything is ready – and that you have time in advance if you want to have home-grown pickles and sauces on the table, too, but these crops can be worked into your normal planting schedule quite easily, once you know which veg you would like to include.
BRUSSELS SPROUTS
Love them or hate them, there’s no denying that Brussels sprouts pack a massive flavour punch. They are commonly associated with the festive meal, and are surprisingly easy to grow at home. You’ll need to wait until the New Year to start crops – February to April is the ideal sowing period. Seedlings do best with an under cover start and they can be planted out to their final position from mid-May, depending on if the last frosts have passed. Two of the most common issues that this veg contends with are attacks from birds and caterpillars. A good, sturdy netting should protect them quite simply from both of these problems.
POTATOES
GYO editor Laura says:
“My favourite home-grown Christmas dinner staple is definitely the roast potato! They are always a real crowd-pleaser, and can be grown quite successfully in potato bags, even if you only have a balcony on which to grow.”
This veg is top of the list for many Christmas dinners. Roast them just right for a perfectly crunchy exterior and fluffy soft inside, but for an even greater triumph serve ones you have grown yourself. When cultivating potatoes, the time in spring to plant tubers varies depending on whether you are growing first earlies, second earlies or maincrops. Dig a ditch in a sunny area of the veg patch and plant the tubers – check the spacing requirements as this alters with types. It is also worth noting they can be grown in containers, too. You can lift spuds, depending on variety, from around June to October. With the harvest of maincrop potatoes ending in autumn, it is important to store them correctly so they will last you through the winter months.
SQUASH
You may think the time for squashes passed us in autumn, but any winter types with well-cured skins that are still sitting in storage are the perfect addition to roasts
