September usually marks the end of the summer, most of your crops are coming to an end and the nights start to draw in. If we are lucky, we may have an Indian summer with clear blue skies and plenty of sunshine.
Green Manure
If your beds are going to be empty over the winter months, consider sowing some green manure. Sow them in rows or broadcasting them and then raking the seeds into the soil. Consider using Grazing Rye (Secale cereale) as your winter green manure. This resilient green manure thrives when sown between August and November, enriching your soil structure throughout the colder months. Come spring, simply dig it into the ground to nourish your soil for the next growing season.
Make room in your compost bins
Autumn see’s a lot of compostable material as plants and crops die back. To make room for this, empty your compost bins and apply homemade compost to your beds or as mulch around any existing crops and plants. As you fill up your compost bins, add a mixture of green and brown material for a rich compost next year.
The harvest continues
Keep an eye on your runner beans and French beans; they’re still producing. Make it a habit to pick them every couple of days to ensure a prolonged harvest.
Your main crop potatoes should be ready for harvesting now. Once you’ve gathered them, give the area a good dig a few days later to retrieve any remaining ones.
As your squashes and pumpkins ripen, be proactive in preventing rot by lifting them off the ground. For the larger ones, consider using an old pallet for support.
Main crop carrots will soon be ready for picking. Pull them up and store them in damp sand or freeze for the winter months. Any damaged carrots can be preserved by freezing them.