Growing veg for the table takes time and trouble, so it should always be enjoyed at its best. Small is often best in summer but the rules can be different now.

Taste is, of course, paramount and is best with a freshly picked crop. Although some supermarket crops, like broccoli, are good, I’ve never bought an edible sprout. So it’s no surprise that its dry, ‘tinny-like’ flavour puts folk off. Size matters: the flavour is too mild when a sprout has a much smaller diameter than 2cm and overly strong when over 3cm.

Timing is as important as size. As garden sprouts and cabbages age, the flavour deteriorates badly and they too become unpalatable.  In the same way, large kale leaves are good and tasty up till early winter but then become coarse and need longer cooking. You then have to wait for fresh leaves in spring.

Celery collapses in frost, but celeriac, like neeps, needs one or two light, early frosts to bring out the flavour.

CeleriacCeleriac (Image: PA)

But the vagaries of the weather determine everything and give us all a valuable alibi. Even if a cabbage survives extreme cold, it can’t handle relentless, root-rotting wet. You may need to remove any soggy leaves before moulds destroy the lot. If, as is less likely these days, heavy snow is forecast, lift and store in a cool place enough veg to last a few days. Veg frozen in the garden and then cooked is poor quality but if left to thaw naturally will be fine.

Perhaps pest damage is the worst winter hazard. It certainly is in my rural garden where slugs, rodents large and small, badgers, deer and corvids all abound. After a fresh fall of snow a complex network of footprints confirms the garden was much busier overnight than during the day.

With or without snow, any unprotected crops are fair game for any hungry consumer. So you have to decide how much of your produce you want to share with these other garden residents.

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Nets obviously protect brassicas against birds and deer but they also provide welcome shelter for wee rodents, molluscs and aphids. And voles always enjoy a green salad - lettuce or brassica - and don’t seem to realise that by nipping young spring cabbage stems they’re denying themselves a larger meal later. With protective net, firmly pegged down to stop birds getting in, mousetraps, checked daily, are the best option. After a few days, you’ll have dealt with the nearby population.

Molluscs and associated hangers-on like worms and millipedes, are more difficult. They take up residence in target crops like cabbage, neeps or whatever swells up nicely to provide a secure hideaway and ample food source. But slugs move out before the temperature plummets: on only a very few occasions have I found a frozen slug in situ.

So you could be faced with the task of washing them away and their processed cabbage leaves before using the rest. The alternative can be irresistible: only grow as many plants as you can use before the ‘bad guys’ move in.

Otherwise, you’ll need to lift and store carrots, parsnips, celeriac, cabbage or whatever applies. Keep root vegetables moist, storing in damp sand. It’s a hassle and you may not have enough space.

Plant of the week

Jade Plant, Crassula ovata, is an easy to care for houseplant. It needs bright light and in winter should be moved nearer to a window to compensate for our low weak sun; It originates in South Africa. Water very sparingly as its succulent leaves store water.

It can be maintained as a small plant or allowed to slowly grow in to a 2 meter shrub.  Repot in spring into a slightly larger pot if you want it to get bigger or in to one the same size with fresh compost if it is as large as you want.

Jade Plant, Crassula ovataJade Plant, Crassula ovata (Image: unknown)

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