Wrapping up in the October garden

It always feels to me like the end of the season now.  I'm waiting to get stuff out, with fingers crossed that the weather gets the last of the beans dry for storage, and the squashes well cured.

Most of the beans which were dry I picked off last night, and are shelled and geting a final drying on a large tray in the kitchen.

I've got onion sets, garlic and and broad bean seed waiting for space to become available.  The plan is for them to follow aforementioned beans and butternut squash when they come out.  I like to plant the onion sets and garlic later in October, maybe November.  Some plant them earlier, but on my windswept plot I don't want them to put on too much top growth before winter.  The beans will go in the garden plot, never have much luck at the lotty in the heavy clay, they get blackleg.

Speaking of onions, how do you grow yours ?  I grow overwintering ones from sets, and spring planted ones either from sets, or multi-sown (as per Geoff Hamilton's suggestion) in modules.  Sowing onion seed direct has never come good for me, and growing overwintering onions from seed  seems far too fraught !

I have only ever grown from sets, but did once try starting them off in modules. For the amount of faffing about that was, I would rather plant them straight into the ground and cover them with fleece until they are established. I have only ever planted in spring.

They are quite satisfying to grow, but more recently, whilst I have had limited time and space, I have jettisoned anything that is relatively cheap to buy - so no carrots, potatoes, onions. Haven't any plans to grow them next year, but I could change my mind.

I got a fair bit of time in the garden and allotment at the weekend. Cleared out the remains of compost, sand and gravel trays, which I transported to the lotty and spread on the area that will grow carrots next year. Whilst at the allotment, I cleared the remains of squashes and climbing beans, raked in some well rotted manure and planted the onions and garlic. Slowly regaining some control of the plot. I planted onions Shakespeare and Red Cross, and garlic Provence Wight and Carcassone Wight. These garlics from the Isle of Weight are great; the bulbs we are using are so fat they won't always fit in the little terracotta storage pot we have in the kitchen. Quite a contrast to the fiddly little cloves you used to get from older varieties.

Where was it we talked about keeping cucumbers and courgettes by wrapping in cling film? And when? I tried that, then sort of forgot to use them, then remembered and thought yuk! Didn't fancy sorting out the mush. Until now. There was mush, but to my amazement one good courgette and one good cucumber. They have kept for ages - 6 weeks or more I think.

Garlic just poking through the ground.

I am down to the last of my courgettes - it's now gone too cold for any more in the polytunnel. I have had a constant supply kept wrapped, there are now 2 left at least a month old, probably more, as I have been using the more recent ones as soon as picked. Not one of my courgettes has gone mushy wrapped this way and because I had such a glut most must have been at least 3 weeks . I didn't try with cucumbers as I didn't have enough.

I wonder if it would work to oil the skins, instead of using cling film. I was reading up on how best to store butternut squash, and one site suggested oiling the skins once cured to help prevent moisture loss. Might experiment if I remember next year, as I would prefer not to use plastics.