{"id":4079,"date":"2025-07-09T20:03:55","date_gmt":"2025-07-09T19:03:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/?page_id=4079"},"modified":"2026-08-16T13:29:17","modified_gmt":"2026-08-16T12:29:17","slug":"november","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/?page_id=4079","title":{"rendered":"November"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Next Month<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

November marks the transition into winter on the allotment. Growth is slowing, but there is still plenty to do: clear finished crops, protect and improve the soil, plant a few crops for next year and harvest the hardy vegetables that come into their own as the weather gets colder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Protect Your Soil<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Clear spent crops and troublesome weeds to reduce places for pests and disease to overwinter. Healthy plant material can go onto the compost heap, but diseased material is best kept out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Add a layer of compost or well-rotted manure to beds that will benefit from it. Leaving organic matter on the surface over winter allows worms and the weather to gradually incorporate it into the soil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Try not to leave soil unnecessarily bare. A layer of compost or mulch will protect the surface from heavy winter rain, while green manure can be useful on ground that won’t be needed until spring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Avoid walking on or working waterlogged soil, as this can compact it and damage its structure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Planting for Next Year<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

November is a good month to plant garlic and autumn varieties of onion sets, provided the soil is reasonably well drained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardy varieties of broad beans can also be sown for an earlier crop next year. On heavy or wet ground it may be better to start them in pots or wait until spring, as beans can rot in cold, waterlogged soil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bare-root fruit trees and bushes can be planted during the dormant season, making November a good time to add apples, pears, currants, gooseberries or raspberries to the plot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Overwintering Crops & Harvesting<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Keep an eye on hardy vegetables such as kale, leeks, winter cabbages and Brussels sprouts, removing damaged or yellowing leaves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brassicas may need protecting from pigeons, which become increasingly interested in them as other food disappears. Check that netting is secure after autumn winds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Parsnips, leeks, kale, sprouts and other winter vegetables can be harvested as required. Parsnips traditionally improve after a frost as some of their stored starch is converted into sugars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Watering<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Watering should now be needed only occasionally. Newly planted fruit trees, bushes and other plants may need water during prolonged dry periods, but established crops generally won’t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The greater problem at this time of year is likely to be too much water rather than too little, so make sure beds and paths aren’t becoming unnecessarily waterlogged.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wildlife<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Don’t be too enthusiastic about tidying every corner. Leaving some undisturbed areas provides valuable winter shelter for insects and other wildlife.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Piles of leaves and suitable plant material can provide shelter for hedgehogs and invertebrates, but keep them somewhere they won’t become a trip hazard or obstruct paths.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tools & Tidying<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Clean soil from tools before putting them away and lightly oil metal surfaces to help prevent rust. Drain and store hoses and watering equipment where frost cannot damage them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Check sheds, greenhouses and other structures for loose panels or damage before the worst of the winter weather arrives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Clear any non-compostable rubbish from your plot in preparation for the end-of-month rubbish collection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

November may feel like the end of the growing year, but a little work now will protect your plot through the winter and make getting started again in spring considerably easier.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Next Month November marks the transition into winter on the allotment. Growth is slowing, but there is still plenty to do: clear finished crops, protect and improve the soil, plant a few crops for next year and harvest the hardy … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":170,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-4079","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4079","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/170"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4079"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4079\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4439,"href":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4079\/revisions\/4439"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/whetstoneallotments.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4079"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}