UK growing guide · Autumn
What can I plant in October?
Last updated
October is one of the best planting months if you like an easy win. Vegetables to plant in October in the UK are garlic, autumn onion sets and overwintering broad beans. They sit through winter and grow away in spring.
It is also the month to finish the harvest. Squash, apples and the last tomatoes will not wait for a hard frost.
What to sow in October
Vegetables to plant in October in the UK, split between sowing under cover and sowing outside.
Indoors or under cover
Outdoor sowings are few. Pots in a cold frame are the backup if your soil is heavy or you garden somewhere cold.
- Broad beans — in pots, for cold or wet gardens
Garlic — in modules if the bed is sodden
Lettuce — winter varieties, under cover
Outdoors
Choose free-draining ground. Broad beans and garlic both rot in a puddle. If the allotment is wet clay, use pots and plant out later.
- Broad beans — hardy overwintering types, mild and sheltered plots
- Garlic — separate the cloves, plant pointed end up
- Winter salads — under a cloche or in a frame, not in the open on cold plots
What to plant out in October
Garlic and onion sets are the main planting. Spring cabbage can still go in. Bare-root fruit arrives in the shops now and can be planted once the leaves have fallen, as long as the soil is workable.
- Garlic — a thumb's depth, in well-drained soil
Autumn onion sets- Cabbage — spring cabbage
- Bare-root fruit trees and bushes — once dormant, not into frozen ground
What to harvest in October
Clear the tender crops before a hard frost, and lift roots you want to store. Leeks and parsnips can stay in the ground.
Pumpkins — before a hard frost; cure the skins somewhere airy- Apples and pears — store only sound fruit
Carrots — lift for store, or leave under a mulch
Beetroot
Potatoes — any still in the ground- Leeks — the first proper liftings
Kale
Tomatoes — pick them green and ripen indoors if blight or frost threatens
October jobs on the plot
Protect soil and brassicas, and put the watering can away before a freeze splits it.
Plant garlic properly
One clove, pointed end up, in ground that drains. A wet bed grows rot, not bulbs. Rows are easier to hoe than a scatter.
Mulch empty beds
Compost or leaf mould over bare soil protects the structure through winter rain. Don't dig it in on a wet day.
Net the brassicas
Pigeons will strip kale and cabbage in a week. Peg the net down or they walk underneath.
Pack away hoses and drain taps
A frozen outdoor tap is a miserable repair. Lag it, and empty the watering cans.
Frost and where you garden
North and south in October
Frost becomes likely through October, arriving first in the north, on high ground and in inland valleys. Tender plants are finished once a hard frost hits. Root crops in the ground are fine. Fruit and squash are not.
Further north, and high ground
In the north, plant garlic in the first half of the month if you can, while the soil is still workable. Broad beans are safer in pots under cover than in open ground. Expect frost, and harvest squash promptly.
The south and sheltered coasts
The south and south-west can plant garlic and sow broad beans through the month in a mild spell. West-coast plots stay softer for longer. Clay everywhere is still a reason to wait for a dry week.
Easy mistakes in October
October rewards a bit of fussiness about drainage. Wet is a bigger enemy than cold for the things you plant now.
Planting garlic in a bog
Cloves rot. If the bed squelches, plant in modules and move them when it dries.
Leaving fallen fruit
Rotting apples and pears feed pests and disease next year. Pick them up.
Composting blighted haulms
Tomato and potato blight does not belong on the heap. Put it in the council green waste or the bin, as your local scheme allows.
Keep October on the dashboard
Sproutly is a web garden diary for UK fruit and veg growers. Add the plants and the jobs, then see what's due on your dashboard.
Record your sowings
Note what you sowed in October, and which bed it went in.
Plan the month's jobs
Add planting, covering and picking as tasks with a due date.
See what's due
Your dashboard shows what's due and what's overdue. Sproutly does not email you or send a push to your phone.
Sketch the beds
Use the garden planner to try a layout before you plant it for real.
Ready to plan your October garden?
Add this month's plants and jobs to your diary. Basic is free for up to 3 plants and 3 tasks. Pro is £5 a month if you want more, including recurring tasks.
Free to start · No annual plan
Gardening advice is provided as a general guide based on typical UK conditions. Weather soil and local climate can vary so always use your judgement and adjust timing as needed for your own garden.