To do on your plot in February

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The last few February’s have often been the coldest winter month. However spring is not far away. It’s usually better to hold off than try to sow in cold waterlogged ground that will rot seeds rather than germinate them. With our local soil being a clay the ground can be very wet and heavy.

 General Jobs

Finish tasks such as digging over, creating leafmould heaps etc.

Give the greenhouse a good clean, ensure the glass is firmly secured. Give the greenhouse a thorough clean before seed growing season.

Wash out and sterilise seed trays and pots so you seedlings will get off to the best possible start.

You can cover soil with plastic sheeting, fleece or cloches to warm it up for a couple of weeks before you start to sow and plant.

Harvest

There may still be some leeks available to harvest. Parsnips, turnips and swedes in the ground can be dug up when you are ready.

The cabbage family should be providing some early purple sprouting, kale and Brussels sprouts also available.

Other crops you may have: salsify, scorzonera, chicory, endive, celeriac, celery and Jerusalem artichokes.

Sowing & Planting

If conditions are suitable you can sow your broad beans in February along with early peas for a May / June harvest.

Jerusalem artichokes and shallots can be planted now, although shallots will benefit from covering with a cloche.

Under Cover

If you have a greenhouse, you can get an early crop of lettuce, rocket and radish underway. You can utilise cloches outdoors but success will be more dependent on the weather.

Onions from seed should be started now. They need about 15 degrees to get them going so you may be best using the windowsill in a cool room to start them off.

Fruit Planting & Pruning

There is still time to finish planting fruit trees and bushes, especially raspberries and other cane fruits.

Early this month you can prune apple and pear trees while they are still dormant. It’s also time to prune gooseberries and currants. With currants shorten the side shoots to just one bud and remove old stems from the centre of the bushes.

Rhubarb can be forced for an early crop of the sweetest stalks. Just cover a crown with a bucket or an upturned large pot and insulate the outside with straw or compost for added heat.

To do on your plot in January

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General on plot

Digging over now if there is a fine day will also have the benefit of exposing pests in the soil which will be eaten by friendly birds.

As you harvest brassicas, dig up the stems and turn the ground over. Because the compost heap will be cold and slow at this time of year, you can always bury these in the bottom of a trench along with some kitchen waste to prepare for the runner beans later in the year.

Harvest

Leeks may be ready to harvest. Parsnips and swedes in the ground can come up when you are ready.

The cabbage family may be providing some sustenance and beet leaves, perpetual spinach and chards could be available.

Sowing & Planting

January is not the month for outdoor planting although you may be able to make use of your greenhouse, especially if you can keep it frost free with heaters.

Fruit

Do not prune stone fruits like cherry and damson, although you can still prune apples and pears etc.

Remove any mummified fruits hanging or on the ground under the trees as these will be harbouring pests.

Seeds

Since it is likely the weather will be keeping you indoors, you could browse through the seed catalogues or take a look at the seed merchant’s web sites and decide what to try this year.

Although you probably have your favourite varieties, it may be an opportunity to try some new varieties and compare the performance.

Cabbages

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Conditions

To grow the best-hearting cabbages you will need a firm, well-consolidated soil that has not been freshly manured. That means digging over the ground several months prior to planting and adding plenty of well-rotted manure or compost as you do so.

My greatest successes always seem to come when I plant young cabbages in ground that hasn’t been dug for 10 months. For example, this month I’ll be planting young spring cabbages in soil that was dug back in November; plenty of well-rotted manure was incorporated at that time and the soil was then used variously for legumes (peas, beans) or leafy salad veg. Now that it’s time for growing cabbages on that ground, any excess nitrogen within the manure has dissipated, leaving behind solid, fertile soil that’s high in humus content (essential for good plant growth).

Cabbages do best in a soil with a pH of 6–7. If the soil is too acidic (less than 6), it is important to put down lime a month or so before planting to balance it out. If your soil is sandy, apply ground limestone at the rate of 200g per 1m2; use 50 percent more on loamy ground and 50 percent more again if it is clay. These quantities should raise the pH level by one point or so.

Clubroot thrives in damp, acidic conditions, so the soil should be free-draining to help ensure it doesn’t become a problem. If needs be, improve the drainage by adding a 45cm depth of shingle. Good crop rotation will also help to prevent the build-up of clubroot and other soil-borne problems.

Sowing

You should get spring cabbages underway from mid-to late summer (the young plants should be transplanted during early to midautumn). Sow the seeds in a nursery bed outside (to save space on the plot proper) or use trays or modules under cover.

If you’re sowing outdoors, put down a garden line (a string between two pegs will do) and use it as a guide for creating a drill 1cm deep, using a draw hoe or the corner of a sharp metal rake to do so. Water the row using a can with a fine rose end attachment then sow the seed thinly along it. Lightly rake the drill, knocking the soil back over the seeds, and gently tamp over the area with the back of the rake. If you’re sowing multiple rows ensure there is at least 15cm between each one. After germination, thin out the seedlings to 8cm apart to prevent them becoming weak and spindly due to overcrowding.

If you’re sowing in trays or modules fill them with seed compost to within 2.5cm from the top. Lightly sprinkle the seeds on the surface, cover them (preferably using a wide-mesh sieve) with 1cm of the compost, and water.

However they are sown, transplant the seedlings to their permanent position when they are 10cm in height and have grown five or six leaves. If you’re transplanting from a nursery bed, water the rows the day before. This will soften the soil, aiding lifting and minimising root and stem damage. If you don’t get around to sowing, garden centres are increasingly stocking young plants at this time.

Growing

For traditional hearting cabbages, the young plants should be spaced at 25–30cm intervals in the row. For spring greens, grow the leafy purpose-bred varieties 20–25cm apart, or space normal spring cabbage varieties just 10–15cm apart and harvest the leaves while they are immature. In all cases the rows should be at 25–30cm spacings.

Late summer temperatures are quite important for these cabbages. For example, they tend to be at their best in the 15–20°C range and will suffer if transplanted when the weather is above 25°C. Remember, these plants are hardy, being able to survive the winter, and in trials have stuck it out at -10°C.

Firm planting is important, so don’t be afraid to really press down on the soil around the transplanted seedlings, but be careful not to damage the stem. Water the young plants straight after transplanting and again every few days until they are well established – this means for the first couple of weeks or so. Straight after watering it is wise to place felt discs around the stems of the plants to help avoid attacks from cabbage root fly .

Harvesting

Spring cabbages are ready to harvest from mid- to late spring, when the heart is firm to the touch. They should be used straight away – they do not store well (unlike Dutch winter white and some red cabbages which can be stored for several months in a cool, frost-proof shed).

If you don’t immediately need the ground on which the cabbages are growing for another crop, you can produce a second harvest from the stumps – but the cabbages need to be growing in good conditions and be generally healthy. Start by harvesting the main cabbage; slice the head cleanly from its stalk, using a sharp knife and making the cut some 5cm or so up from the ground. Then cut a cross shape 1cm deep into the stump. This will sprout a cluster of smaller cabbages.

If the ground is needed straight away for a crop of something else, harvest spring cabbages by lifting whole plants with a fork. Cut off the roots and stem, and remove the coarser, yellowing or damaged outer leaves.

If you have a glut and can’t use all your spring cabbages quickly, they can be frozen – but only freeze fresh heads of the best quality. Wash and coarsely shred the cabbage, then blanch it (quickly immerse it in boiling water) for about a minute. Dry it and pack into polythene bags or rigid plastic containers.

Sweet Corn

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Conditions

Ideally the ground will be moisture retentive but not allowed to ever become saturated during wet spells. Work in plenty of rotted manure or compost the autumn or winter before planting so that it has plenty of time to be incorporated – aim for a bucket load per square metre. This extra organic matter will improve the structure of the soil, increase the level of nutrients available to the plants and help the ground to warm up quicker in the spring (sweet corn needs plenty of heat). About a week before planting out or sowing the seeds add a good scattering of organic fertiliser pellets, such as concentrated chicken manure, and rake the soil level. Don’t worry too much if you missed the opportunity to prepare the plot last autumn, as you should still get good results by digging over the soil this spring and incorporating compost now.

Sowing

Plenty of sunshine is crucial if the plants are to grow strongly, so aim for a south-facing aspect that will be warm and sheltered. This is probably even more vital to the success of a crop than the soil conditions. Shelter is important as the tall plants will be liable to excessively bend and flex in exposed locations. If you want to sow seeds directly outside in May, then position cloches over the future rows two weeks before the sowing date to warm the soil and speed germination.

Seedlings are not tolerant of frost, which means the earliest you can sow outside directly is mid May. In southern counties you may get away without using cloches or horticultural fleece to warm the soil beforehand, although these will certainly help to make the conditions better. Wait until the soil has dried out slightly before sowing and then set out your seeds in pairs at a depth of 2cm. Space each sowing hole 45cm apart within the row and each row 60cm apart. To maximise the chances of successful wind pollination, plan for a near-square arrangement (see ‘Blowing in the wind’ box).

Alternatively, sow indoors or in a greenhouse from April onwards. Use a quality seed or multipurpose compost. Seedlings hate having their roots disturbed, so sow directly into 7cm fibre pots or home-made versions created using loo roll centres. This will give a good depth of compost for the roots to grow into. They’ll also be able to burst through these make-shift containers, which can be planted whole to reduce the chances of unsettling the roots. Place the seeds 2cm deep in the pots and maintain a minimum temperature of 16°C while they germinate. Once they are through, grow them on at temperatures of no less than 10°C. This shouldn’t be a problem in most greenhouses at springtime.

The seedlings, which look like blades of grass, will appear within two weeks. Remove the weaker of the two to leave one per pot or outdoor sowing station. Keep the covers in place outside as the plants grow, and only remove them once the young plants touch the tops of the cloches or reach 10cm in height under the fleece.

Greenhouse or indoor-raised seedlings can be planted out when they are about 15cm tall and after all chances of frost have gone. Harden them off beforehand by gradually introducing them to their new home over a week or two. Plant them out at the same spacings as you would directly-sown seeds. Water thoroughly to settle the soil around them, and keep the young plants tenderly watered as they establish.

Growing

Sweet corn is very easy to grow once plants are established and is rarely affected by pests and diseases. However, to maintain a steady rate of growth you will need to water consistently after the feathery male and silky female flowers appear. At this stage, plants will grow better if given a liquid feed that’s high in potash – any organic tomato feed should do the job, applied as per the packet instructions, usually once or twice a fortnight. You can help the pollination process by gently tapping or shaking the plants after the male flowers appear.

Plants can reach up to 1.8m tall, which means that if your site isn’t well sheltered you may need to individually stake plants by tying them into bamboo canes wedged next to them. Another method of offering extra support is to bank up the soil against the base of each stem into which new roots can grow to anchor the plant. If any roots appear above ground you will, in any case, need to cover them over with soil or compost. Side shoots, known as tillers, may also appear near the base – leave these intact, as removing them can reduce the yield.

Harvesting

Early varieties of sweet corn will yield their first cobs in late July or early August, while the season comes to a close with late-developing types in October. An old American saying advises that you should walk to the plants to harvest your cobs and run back with them – a tradition worth adhering to, because freshness is of the essence! A flat sprint may be a little extreme, but it is true that the high sugar levels that have been bred into sweet corn begin converting to starch within hours of picking. That’s why the taste of freshly-plucked home-grown corn is so superior to shop-bought versions.

You will know it is almost time for picking when the silky tassels on the developing cobs turn a chocolate brown and start to wither. At this point, gently peel back the protective sheath to inspect the corn. Squeeze a kernel with your thumb nail. If a clear liquid oozes out then wait a little while longer, but if a creamy elixir appears then it’s time to pick your crop. If there’s no liquid you have waited too long. Harvest the cobs by twisting them sharply away from the plant, or use a pair of secateurs to cut them free. In a good summer you may get two per plant but don’t be disappointed if you only achieve one.