Itching to get sowing? Lee Senior says, for some legume seeds, you can make a start now…
I’ve always been a mad keen veg gardener. No passion, no point as they say! There are of course plenty more clichés… the early bird catches the worm for example. Well that may be so, but not if the ground is frozen! All my life I’ve battled to temper my gardening enthusiasm with reality. The cold reality that nothing much grows when it’s sub-zero, didn’t stop me planting my onion sets during the cold snap last November. My excuse is that I’d forgotten about them in their bag and they were starting to sprout prematurely. So while rattling around at home one day, I felt in the mood to do a bit of gardening. Out came the seed trays, compost and sets, so far so good. The problem was the temperature of minus three, meaning that just about everything. was frozen.Thinking on my feet, I boiled a kettle, and poured the hot water over the frozen multi-purpose compost. This defrosted it instantly and I then joyously planted the normally reliable ‘Senshyu’ onion sets in several pots and trays. I duly covered them with two layers of frost protection fleece and popped them in my unheated greenhouse. After all these years, this was a new, wacky and fun experience for me. Ten minutes of gardening happiness! Let’s hope I’m still saying that in May. As ever with gardening, the outcome is usually a waiting game.
AN EARLY START FOR SOME LEGUME SEEDS
Fast forward to mid-January and I’ve still got those same itchy seed sowing fingers! Despite that, this is a time of year to be measured, to be patient and only do the absolute minimum with regards to seed sowing. After all, there are plenty of outdoor jobs to do, not least the spreading of well-rotted manure across some beds in preparation for the forthcoming season. This is an enjoyable job, building as it does towards the anticipation of spring and burning off a few excess Christmas calories at the same time. A win-win, as long as the weather is onside. It is worth noting that any beds earmarked for root crops, such as carrots or parsnips, shouldn’t be manured as it will cause the roots to fang and split.
WORTH GOING FOR IT?
During the inevitable cold and fluctuating temperatures of winter, seed germination will be slower and often less reliable, unless you use a heated propagator or suitable heat source. Realistically, if you can’t provide appropriate conditions of warmth, good light and protection from cold, it really isn’t worth starting any seeds in January. I know a good number of successful veg growers who never sow a seed until early March. By contrast, there are plenty who start early as I tend to. That’s the clever thing about gardening, the best way is simply the way that works for you, with your time and resources.
This article extract was taken from the February 2025 edition of The Country Smallholder. To read the article in full, you can buy the issue here.
