As the frosty weather clings on, a gardening expert has shared his invaluable insight on which vegetables need to be planted now. Monty Don, the revered British horticulturist and television star, asserts that certain veggies can be sown in this chill.
On his website, Monty advised: “In the vegetable garden I dig and, if the soil is dry enough, sow broad beans and plant onion sets. If the ground is at all workable then I always try and sow some broad beans in February for an early crop.
“As soon as the soil warms up a little and the days get longer they will have had enough of a start to provide a picking a week or so earlier than the later ones – and that is a treat worth preparing for.”
The host of Gardeners’ World also highlighted the importance of making full use of the potting shed and greenhouse in these colder months, reports the Mirror. He said: “The potting shed and greenhouse become the centre of activity, sowing seeds, taking dahlias out of hibernation, chitting potatoes.
“There is a temptation to sow too much, and almost everything that is to eventually be planted outside is better left until March, but I find it an irresistible impulse to sow as much as I can.”
Finally, Monty underlined the significance of prepping the garden before spring arrives and seizing any favourable weather, which he describes as ‘dry and not so cold that the ground is frozen hard’, to get out into the garden.
Monty divulged his love for winter tomato planting, he said: “I like to sow tomatoes in two batches, the first in February and another in March or even April both to stagger the harvest and as an insurance against bad weather.
“I scatter the seed thinly on the surface of peat-free compost in a seed tray and then very lightly covering them either with a layer of more compost or of vermiculite. Water them well and put them in a warm spot to germinate.”