Lettuce

Sow corn salad in September: the hardiest winter salad for your raised bed

Corn salad is the only salad that survives real frost and stays tender. September is the last good sowing window — wait any longer and you'll go without fresh salad until spring.

The September switch: clearing summer crops and planting your autumn bed

September is the month of the big changeover. Tomatoes are winding down, courgettes are getting tired — and the space they leave behind is some of the most valuable growing ground of the whole year.

Radishes in September: the last sowing before winter

September is the last month when radishes really work. Cool nights make them crispier and sharper than anything you grew in summer. Sow now, harvest in mid-October — just before everything stops.

Sow rocket in August: four weeks to your first harvest

Rocket is the fastest harvest in the autumn raised bed. Sow now and you'll be cutting the first round in four weeks — sharper, more aromatic than in summer, and again and again through to November. Nothing else grows this quickly.

Sow spinach in August — harvesting through autumn and winter

Sow spinach at the end of August and you'll be picking fresh leaves from October into January. Most people wait too long and miss the window. Germination takes four days — if you sow now, you still make it.

Pak choi in August: sow now for your autumn harvest

Pak choi bolts in summer — too much heat, too much light, and it starts making seeds instead of heads. August is the turning point: cooler nights, shorter days, and it finally does what you want. The window lasts four weeks.