The garden will be starting to wind down now – there isn't a lot left you can sow or plant this late into the year, apart from garlic, which likes a cold spell before it puts on a growth spurt in the springtime.
It really couldn't be easier to grow: use a 35-40 cm deep container, buy specially prepared bulbs and split them into cloves, and plant each one out just below the surface of the soil at 2.5cm deep. Plant each one 15-18 cm apart. By spring time, when the leaves will have started to turn yellow and collapse, lift the bulbs on a dry day, and leave them in the sun for a while to dry out before storing.
If you have a sheltered spot you could grow a container of hardy peas for their tips. Sow inside to germinate before hardening off and planting outside. Make sure you have a length of horticultural fleece handy to throw over and protect them in case we get some cold nights.
By doing this you will have some fresh tips to harvest around Christmas time.
If you haven't already started your broad beans, it's probably best to wait until early spring.
There are a few odd jobs you can get on with this month, though.
Clear away fallen leaves from in and around containers. They harbour slugs and snails, which do horrendous damage to new fresh growth. Fill a black sack with the leaves, pierce a few holes in it and add a little sprinkling of water if the leaves are very dry. Hide the bag and store until next year, when they will have rotted down into a beautiful pile of leaf mould. A fantastic mulch, or a great soil improver to both clay and sandy soils.
Clear away or compost any crops that have now finished.
Ensure containers have feet under them to lift them off the ground during winter, as this prevents waterlogging.
Amanda Brame is deputy head of Horticulture at Petersham Nurseries, Church Lane, Petersham Road, Richmond TW10 7AB; petershamnurseries.com. You can learn more about growing an urban garden by attending one of Petersham's masterclasses.
