Spring tasks

Well here we are at the beginning of April already. I have been up to my eyes or whatever in lambing so the garden has been neglected!!

My lovely man, Alan, came yesterday and dug over the veg patch. Proper digging that is, not my pathetic attempt. The soil is only just dry enough to work so all is not lost. With changing seasons, it is important to work to conditions rather than dates. Having said that, I read somewhere that seeds germinate well if sown under a waxing moon!! Well, I put the spuds in yesterday and noticed that it was full moon last night.

The worked soil is crumbly enough to sow and I will try to get in the parsnips - long growing period- carrots, beetroot and some lettuce seeds. These will all go in the third which has no FYM. The other thirds are brassicas and potatoes in rotation as I said before. Just remember what you put where this year and if you can't then start a garden notebook. There you can record which varieties you grow and how they turned out. I always throw the seed packet away and then wonder what it was.

Tomatoes are up but not quite large enough to pot on. I will start to sow brassicas this w/end - in plugs this year. Also courgettes and butternut in pots. Later in the month I will get the beans going in pots too. Happy gardening - it's all go now!!!

Chitting Potatoes

Here are some seed potatoes chitting in an old cherry box. Yes, it looks like what happens if they get lost in the back of the fridge for too long!

Brassicas and low maintenance veg

Question from last post:

What are brassicas? From the list of what you are planning to grow are there any "less maintenance" veggies while we get used growing our own?

My answer:

Brassicas are things like cabbages, caulis, sprouts, purple sprouting… They are prone to clubroot which stunts their growth and then they are useless! To overcome this I do not plant on the same ground for at least 3 years – hence rotation. I also treat with clubroot powder when planting out.

I grow low maint veg too – too many things going on – so my favs are leeks (but get them sown now as per packet instructions), purple sprouting (ditto) which are great to have to eat at this time of the year. I also prefer new pots straight from the garden – so a few of the First Early ones – Accent or Rocket –but get them as seed pots now and set them in egg boxes or similar in a warmish, light place to “chit” ie start sprouting before planting out in March. Grow Apple Mint in a bucket sunk into the ground or it will invade everywhere (a must to go with the spuds).

If you live up North, your season maybe later than ours as you may get frosts after us. Times of sowing and planting will be different.

I have a greenhouse so I love tomatoes – they can also be grown outside if you get a variety that is blight resistant.

Courgettes are dead easy – Plant out on a pile of well rotted manure (they are hungry things and like moisture retentive soil) when risk of frost is over. I only put in 3 plants and that is enough. Don’t forget to pick each day or you will end up with marrows!! If you don’t like marrows, put them on the compost heap – waste not, want not. Butternut squashes are the same procedure and will store all winter in a cool frost free place – Yummy roasted or in soup.

That’s all for now – Good luck!

P

Mid February

Early spring is a time of planning for the veggie patch. Write a list of which veggies you want to grow. Buy seeds or order online (I like Thompson & Morgan seeds) and check the details for sowing. Most will be in March, but there are a few, like aubergines, which need to go in now.

Prepare the beds. You need to divvy the plot into areas and start a rotation going. Decide where you are going to put brassicas, root veg and spuds. Get some compost (we have a good supply of rotted down manure on the farm!) and work into the spuds and the brassicas areas. Don't make the soil rich where you are planning on planting carrots and parsnips, as they do better in poorer soil. Potatoes are good for clearing ground of weeds and for breaking up new beds, and then I like to follow them the next year with root veg. Brassica beds definitely need to be rotated each year to avoid club root.

Tidy up the veggie patch area and sort out any construction work that needs doing.

You are likely to need some seed trays and suitable compost for the seeds you are buying, so get these organised too, and think about where to put them to germinate! I put mine in the conservatory and then on into the greenhouse when the frosts have definitely finished.

If you are growing some flowers from seed, they may need to go in now. Check the packets for instructions.

This is what I'm planning for this year:

Tomatoes - Sungold (cherry tom that I've grown before. Sweet and tasty)
- Ferline (large, beefsteak type, not grown it before)

Lettuce - Pandero (mini cos, good for small gardens and pots apparently - another new one)
- La Touga (got this from Fishbourne Palace, it's Italian and an experiment!)

Leeks - Porvite (needs sowing mid Jan/Feb)

Courgette - Panthenon (this grows well in our garden)

Runner bean - Red Rum (have grown this lots and I like it)

Early purple sprouting - Rudolf (I prefer to grow this as I find my summer broccoli gets caterpillars)

Brussel sprouts - Revenge (love the name!)

Spring cabbage - April

Parsnips - Gladiator

Flowers from seed:

Alstroemeria
Cosmos
Cleome (sow mid Jan/March)

Let me know if you have any questions about what to do in your plot!