Page 40 - Simply Veg Issue 1 2016

February
If you have a heated greenhouse with a propagator there are more seeds you could sow this month. There is still time to sow onions and leeks if they weren’t done last month but also tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, aubergines and celery. Any proprietary seed or multipurpose compost can be used. I prefer to sow cucumbers in individual small pots (I use yoghurt pots) but cell trays could be used. The seed of tomatoes, peppers and aubergines is not as large as cucumbers but large enough to space out about an inch apart on a seed tray. Celery seed
dahlias. If you don’t have a warm bench they will still grow on the greenhouse staging but of course they will grow slower and the cuttings will be later.
Shallots are traditionally planted in December in the greenhouse. I start mine
off in 31⁄2 inch (9cm) pots and this month the roots should have lled these pots and I now pot them on into 5 inch (13cm) pots.
It is a good idea to give your fruit bushes a mulch this month; you can use either well rotted manure or garden compost.
Rhubarb can be divided now, weather permitting. This
is very ne and it
should be sprinkled
as thinly and evenly
over the seed tray
as possible. When
the seeds have
germinated they will
have to come out of the propagator. They will still need warmth to keep them growing so if you cannot provide these conditions
it is no use sowing so early. It would be better to order them from a supplier or wait till April and buy the plants from a garden centre.
should be done every few years when
the crowns get too congested. Lift the crowns carefully to retain as much root as possible and not to
damage it. If the crown can be broken apart by hand ensuring you have at least one bud on each, then do this if not use a knife to cut it into sections. Dig in plenty of organic matter such as manure when you replant.
Last month I wrote about digging and manuring and said it should not be done unless the ground is workable (not frozen or too wet). Only rarely have I managed to nish it in January so if you are in a similar position you need to try and get it nished this month
This is the month when seed potatoes are in the shops and garden centres and if you have ordered them from a supplier this month they are most likely to arrive. Once you have them stand
them in trays or egg
boxes with the eyes at
the top and put them
on a greenhouse shelf
or on a windowsill
in the house to start
them chitting.
If you grow dahlias and have kept your tubers frost-free over the winter you may want to propagate then by taking cuttings but you can only do this if you have a warm bench or propagator. In this case you need to plant the tubers in boxes, not buried but just partly covered and give them bottom heat
to start them into growth. If you can’t do this you can still plant your tubers outside in April.
If you grow chrysanths and wish to propagate them you should have planted your stools in boxes when they were dug up in October. They should now be given bottom heat to start them into growth like
if possible.
I also mentioned
testing the pH value of the soil; the pH determines the availability of plant nutrients. If the pH is too high some
nutrients are “locked” and unavailable to the plants. Therefore different crops like different pH values. pH 7 suits most crops but it should be below 7 for potatoes because this helps to combat scab. For brassicas it should be above 7 to help prevent clubroot. If the pH of any of your beds is too low you need to add lime or limestone our but you must wait at least a month after you have nished your manuring so if this was nished late liming may have to wait till March.
Crops that may be ready for harvesting this month are broccoli, spring cabbage, sprouts, swedes, leeks and celeriac.
March
This is the month when sowing really gets under way; many seeds can be sown direct where they are to grow. This means of course that we have to prepare the beds ready for them. Hopefully all digging and manuring was nished last month and lime added to the soil if it was needed.
I have not mentioned weeds yet but I’m sure they will soon be making an appearance now that the weather is warmer if they have not already done so. We need to see that the ground is as weed-free as possible by forking or raking them out. If there are a lot of tiny weeds it may be a good idea to treat them with weedkiller such as glyphosate. This does not harm the soil and sowing can be done as soon as the weeds have died. If the weeds are larger they will need forking out. We then need to rake the soil to a ne tilth and rake in some general fertiliser such as Growmore or sh, blood and bone at about 3 oz per square yard (100 gms. per square metre). Bear in mind though that if lime has been added you need to wait about a month before adding the fertiliser.
It is a good idea to give your fruit bushes a mulch this month
Rhubarb can be divided now, weather permitting
40 simplyvegetables
Onions germinated
Shallots growing well