This archive brings together practical, experience-led articles from The Backyard Farmer, covering gardening, DIY, indoor growing, foraging, reviews, and sustainable living. Each post is written with real-world use in mind — focusing on working with nature, building practical skills, and making sustainable choices more accessible.
Most UK cucumbers are harvested from July to September, although greenhouse plants may crop from June into October. Pick them once they reach the expected size for the variety, feel firm and show their normal colour. Cucumbers are best harvested before they become yellow, swollen
An allotment is a separate plot of land rented mainly for growing fruit, vegetables, flowers and other plants. Most are managed by councils, allotment associations or private landowners. As a UK allotment holder, a member of the Cheshire Smallholders Association and someone whose work has
August is one of the busiest harvest months in the UK. Beans, courgettes, tomatoes and soft fruit need regular picking, while onions, shallots and some potatoes may be ready to lift for storage. Use the guide below to see what may be ready, how to
June was a quieter month on the allotment, but that is not a bad thing. After the big clear-out in May, this month was more about keeping the plot moving, adding a few more crops, protecting what was already in the ground, and slowly bringing
Choosing a hedge trimmer is not just about picking a brand or model. In many cases, the more important question comes first: should you go cordless, corded, or petrol? That choice affects how easy the tool is to live with, how much cutting power you
Introduction Spinach is one of those crops that looks dead easy on paper until it suddenly is not. One week it looks great, and the next it is bolting, sulking in dry soil, or giving you far less than the space felt worth. The big
Brussels sprouts are a classic winter crop, but they need a long growing season and plenty of space. For most UK growers, the key is to start them early enough, plant them into firm ground and give them room to develop properly. With steady growth
Growing cauliflower in the UK can be really satisfying, but it is also one of those crops that quickly shows you where things are going wrong. If the plants get checked by cold, drought, weak seedlings, poor spacing, or pest damage, the heads usually tell
The Quick Guide above gives a typical UK growing window for cabbage. Spring and winter cabbages follow different schedules, which are covered in their own guides. Cabbage grows well in the UK if you get three things right: timing, firm fertile soil, and early pest
UK frost dates confuse a lot of gardeners because, although the UK is small, it does not behave like one neat growing zone. A sowing date that works in Cornwall, coastal Devon, or a sheltered London garden can still be too early for Scotland, northern
Growing broccoli in the UK is one of those jobs that looks easy on paper, then catches people out in real life. Usually, it is not because broccoli is especially difficult. More often, the plants get checked, the timing is off, pigeons or caterpillars get
Dwarf French beans are one of the easiest beans to grow in the UK once the weather has warmed up properly. They are compact, productive, and much easier to fit into pots, raised beds, and small allotment spaces than climbing beans. In the UK, dwarf