Claire Ratinon

England

Organic Food Grower and Writer at Freelance

Organic Food Grower 🌱 Writer & Columnist 🌿 Author of 'Unearthed' and ‘How To Grow Your Dinner Without Leaving The House’

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Articles

Now is the perfect time to sow broccoli seeds and create your own purple patch

2 weeks ago | theguardian.com | Claire Ratinon

Although the purple sprouting broccoli (PSB) season has come to an end, now is not the time to stop thinking about this vibrant spring crop. If you have the room to grow it, purple sprouting broccoli started from seed now will grow through the summer, stand in the ground overwinter and be poised for picking by early next spring.
Clay, silty or sandy? Testing your soil type is an essential part of becoming a good gardener

4 weeks ago | msn.com | Claire Ratinon

Microsoft Cares About Your PrivacyMicrosoft and our third-party vendors use cookies to store and access information such as unique IDs to deliver, maintain and improve our services and ads. If you agree, MSN and Microsoft Bing will personalise the content and ads that you see. You can select ‘I Accept’ to consent to these uses or click on ‘Manage preferences’ to review your options and exercise your right to object to Legitimate Interest where used.
Clay, silty or sandy? Testing your soil type is an essential part of becoming a good gardener

4 weeks ago | yahoo.com | Claire Ratinon

I often mention my veg patch’s clay soil in this column, and that’s because soil type affects what we grow and how. Getting to know your soil is an essential part of becoming a great grower of edible plants. Soil type is determined by the size of the soil’s particles which, in turn, determine its characteristics. Sandy soil has the largest particles, which means it is light, easy to work, lets water drain through it freely and warms up quickly in spring.
Don’t rush to rip out your nettles – here’s three ways to put them to good use

1 month ago | msn.com | Claire Ratinon

Microsoft Cares About Your PrivacyMicrosoft and our third-party vendors use cookies to store and access information such as unique IDs to deliver, maintain and improve our services and ads. If you agree, MSN and Microsoft Bing will personalise the content and ads that you see. You can select ‘I Accept’ to consent to these uses or click on ‘Manage preferences’ to review your options and exercise your right to object to Legitimate Interest where used.
Don’t rush to rip out your nettles - here’s three ways to put them to good use

1 month ago | theguardian.com | Claire Ratinon

Nettles are rarely considered a welcome sight to gardeners. With their capacity for rampant growth – they spread by rhizome (underground) as well as seed – and the tiny hairs on their stems and leaves that sting any passing bare skin, they are usually uprooted from outside spaces where people are present.
There’s nothing like digging up the year’s first crop of spuds

2 months ago | theguardian.com | Claire Ratinon

As a rule, I discourage small-space gardeners from growing potatoes as they need a fair amount of room and are cheap to buy. Nonetheless, they’re a classic grow-your-own crop: satisfying to cultivate, a pleasure to harvest and delicious – especially if you choose a variety you might not see in a supermarket, such as the heirloom variety Sharpe’s Express (pictured above). Potatoes are divided into different groups based on how long it takes them to produce crops.
Spring is here! It’s time to sow vegetable seeds in your garden

2 months ago | msn.com | Claire Ratinon

Microsoft Cares About Your PrivacyMicrosoft and our third-party vendors use cookies to store and access information such as unique IDs to deliver, maintain and improve our services and ads. If you agree, MSN and Microsoft Bing will personalise the content and ads that you see. You can select ‘I Accept’ to consent to these uses or click on ‘Manage preferences’ to review your options and exercise your right to object to Legitimate Interest where used.
Spring is here! It’s time to sow vegetable seeds in your garden

2 months ago | theguardian.com | Claire Ratinon

There are two dates that herald the beginning of spring. The one determined by astronomy is the vernal equinox, when the sun is exactly over the Equator and day and night are of equal length – that falls on 20 March this year. But I’m more of a fan of the meteorological calendar, which marks spring’s return sooner, on 1 March – today. As auspicious as the equinox can feel, I’ll always opt for calling in spring as early as reasonably possible.
The start of something new: how to propagate fruit bushes from cuttings

Feb 14, 2025 | theguardian.com | Claire Ratinon

Last spring, I did some spontaneous pruning of the rampant blackcurrant bush in my veg patch. Instead of putting the cuttings on the compost heap, I placed them in a vase of water because I find the Ribena-like scent of the leaves just delightful. Within a few weeks, the little branches had started to sprout roots and, eventually, each were poised to grow into a bush.
Why are gen Zs deserting garden centres? Maybe they’re more into planting than shopping

Feb 3, 2025 | msn.com | Claire Ratinon

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