As the days slowly begin to grow shorter, the sunlight takes on a more golden glow, streaming from a lower angle to remind us that warm days will soon be few and far between. However, right now, the mood in the kitchen garden is "harvest festival." It’s the peak of abundance—a joyful overlap of late summer’s bounty and autumn’s first gifts, with the range of colours and flavours at full spectrum. I know the nights will soon be cold, but we’re making the most of it while we can.
In the polytunnel, it's the grand finale for many summer crops. Honeydew melons ripen with a sweet fragrance, and I’m thrilled to harvest our first-ever watermelon! Peppers, both hot and sweet, are slowly blushing a vibrant red. The tomatoes, after a glorious run, are now just beyond their prime. In early August, I pruned their tops to shift their energy toward ripening the fruit already set. A slow deterioration is on their doorstep after a successful summer of producing sweet-acidic orbs of joy.
One of my ambitions this year was to keep all beds full of plants, ensuring food harvests from summer into winter. Right now, it’s going to plan—almost too well, as I’m currently struggling to find space for new seedlings. But it’s a good problem to have. As the pressure of high summer slowly eases, we have more time to keep the beds tidy, removing weeds while they’re still small and clearing dying or slug-eaten leaves. Growth remains strong, and the garden looks picture-perfect whenever the sun graces us.
I will always associate September in the garden with bean picking, especially yellow French beans from dwarf plants. They are a valuable and prolific harvest. So prolific, in fact, that hours can pass as we kneel among the bushy plants, plucking kilo upon kilo of beans. It’s remarkable how much you can get from each plant. We return to the same plant every five days until they run out of steam—which won’t be long now.
The steady weather has made most vegetables very comfortable, with just enough rain meaning little watering has been needed. Brassicas such as Brussels sprouts and savoy cabbage are tough and can survive on very little water over the summer months. This year, they have even withstood attacks by cabbage root fly, whose small maggots eat at the roots. It’s quite horrifying to see! But thanks to no-dig methods, we have strong plants and healthy soil, and they’ve all outgrown this pest. They are now looking strong for the relatively pest-free days of autumn.
With such an abundance of produce, we’ve been able to offer our first vegetable boxes—a goal we’ve long had. Sharing the harvest more widely has always been something I’ve wanted to do, although the hotel kitchens usually take everything I produce. We were getting a lot of requests, so we set aside some veggies and boxed them up in limited quantities for our wonderful spa members, with all proceeds supporting the charity Hospitality Action. The feedback has been fantastic—it’s so interesting to hear what others do with slightly different vegetables than are normally available in the supermarket, and heartwarming to share the same appreciation for the garden’s gifts.
As autumn approaches, the flowers continue to bloom, holding onto the last of summer’s vibrancy. I’ve kept flowers at the top and bottom of almost every bed—not just for their beauty, but for the biodiversity they bring. The honeybees are especially grateful. Zinnias, Rudbeckia, Dahlias, and Ducas are the stars of late summer, standing tall and weathering the wind in this open space. They are low-maintenance, unlike cosmos and cornflowers, which require constant deadheading and always flop over. And I must admit, I’ve lost my affection for Verbena bonariensis—it self-seeds everywhere, making it more trouble than it’s worth!
Day length is reducing fast, and although there is still a good level of warmth, there’s no time left for sowing outside—except for garlic. In the polytunnel, it’s a bit different, as mid-September brings the final flush of sowings. These are all crops that I will pick over winter, such as spinach, mustard frills, parsley, chard, and rocket. I have seedlings of spring cabbage and spring onions ready to go outside, and hopefully, they will stand strong through winter, giving me a head start on next year’s spring harvest.
I hope the September sun blesses your garden, whether it’s a sprawling patch or a sunny windowsill, and that you eat well from your harvest.
My new recipe is up - COURGETTE AND BASIL BREAD
Until next time…
Darren Stephens
Chef-Gardener, Homewood
