Page 43 - Simply Vegetables Winter 2021/22

January
There are a few things that can be planted this month, providing that the ground is properly prepared and neither waterlogged or frozen.
Rhubarb can be planted, and existing clumps can be dug up and divided. When you divide a clump just see that each piece has at least one growing shoot. Add plenty of organic matter
to the ground before planting such as rotted manure or compost.
Two other crops that can be planted now are shallots and garlic. Shallots are traditionally planted in December but if you didn’t do so there is still time. Both can be planted direct in the bed providing is has been properly prepared. However, I prefer to start them off in pots in the greenhouse. They don’t need extra heat, just leave them on the staging or on a shelf. My own reason for planting in pots is that I don’t usually have the ground ready so early.
Fruit trees and bushes can be planted any time during the dormant season
so now is a good time. If you have ordered any from a supplier, they could have been delivered any time since
Manure ready for digging in
November. However, if you haven’t ordered any you can still get them from a garden centre. Fruit trees are grafted onto a rootstock which determines their eventual height.
The rootstock and the
expected height should
be on the label, so you
need to decide what
height you want. In the
case of apples M27 and
M9 are the most dwarfing.
Earlier, I mentioned preparing the
ground. All finished crops should be cleared and put on the compost heap unless they are
diseased, and the ground forked over and weeded. Weedkillers don’t work at this time of year so they need to be dug out, particularly perennial weeds. I have a load of manure delivered each year and when the beds are cleared and weeded it is forked into the beds
that need it. I have written about crop rotation before, but I am doing so again because I consider it very important. I grow runner beans, onions, and leeks in the same beds each year, but all other crops are grown in a four-year rotation. Bed 1 potatoes, bed 2 root crops (other than potatoes), bed 3 brassicas and
bed 4 any others (broad and French beans, peas, courgettes sweet corn and squashes). Crops on bed 1 go into bed 2 the following year and so on. Crops are grouped together that need the same growing conditions. Salad crops such as lettuce and radish are not included in the rotation. I just plant them anywhere there is room because they are only in the ground for a short time.
Seasonal jobs
DEREK BROOKS FNVS
Two other crops that can be planted now are shallots and garlic
Garlic in pots
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