We're venturing into bleak midwinter territory, but you can still learn how to grow broad beans – in fact, now is the best time to tackle this hardy vegetable if you want a tasty crop come summer.

Broad beans are an ancient favourite with evidence of cultivation from as early as 6,000 BC. Easy to grow, high in protein and rich in vitamin C they're still a must for today's vegetable plot.

A smaller-scale trial to grow them in 2022 failed due to the summer heatwave. Some health food brands have attempted to market British-grown broad beans as "baked beans", but they have lacked mass ...