October Allotments Tips
October is a month of change on the allotment. As the days become cooler and shorter, it’s time to finish harvesting, tidy your plot and prepare everything for the winter months ahead.
🍁 Here are our top tips for October :
- 🌱 Sow overwintering vegetables now for an early start next spring.
- 🎃 Harvest pumpkins, squashes and any remaining late-season crops before the first frosts arrive.
- 🌿 Dig over empty beds and add compost or well-rotted manure to improve soil for next year.
- ♻️ Turn your compost heap and add a mix of green and brown materials to create nutrient-rich compost.
- 🍂 Clear away weeds, dead plants and old supports to reduce pests and diseases over winter.
- 🧤 Protect tender crops with fleece or cloches if frosty nights are forecast.
- 🏡 Clean and organise your greenhouse and shed while things begin to slow down.
- 🌷 Plant spring-flowering bulbs ready for a colourful display next year.
🌿 Jobs for October
October is all about preparing your allotment for winter while making the most of the last of this year’s harvest.
This month’s key jobs include:
- Harvest pumpkins, squashes, potatoes, carrots and any remaining vegetables.
- Sow hardy overwintering crops such as garlic, onions and broad beans.
- Dig over vacant beds and enrich the soil with compost or manure.
- Clear away weeds, spent plants and old canes.
- Turn your compost heap to speed up decomposition.
- Clean greenhouses, cold frames and pots ready for winter growing.
- Earth up and support Brussels sprouts if needed.
- Prune suitable fruit trees, bushes and hedges.
- Plant spring bulbs and hardy winter bedding plants.
- Organise your shed, tools and supplies before winter arrives.
🌱 What to sow in October
Although the growing season is slowing down, there’s still plenty you can sow and plant to keep your allotment productive through winter and into spring.
Sow outdoors
- Onions
- Garlic
- Broad beans
- Peas
- Spinach
- Black radish
Plant out
- Cauliflower
- Overwintering greens and brassicas
- Winter cabbage
- Strawberry runners
- Spring bulbs and wallflowers
Grow under cover
- Lettuce
- Rocket
- Mizuna
- Mustard greens
- Spring onions
October is also the perfect time to prepare for next year’s success. By improving your soil, planting hardy crops and protecting your plot from the colder weather, you’ll give your allotment a great head start for spring.