The Vegetable Garden in February

Jobs to do in the vegetable garden or allotment in February. Click the links to find out more about gardening tasks and specific vegetables.

Seeds to sow indoors in a heated greenhouse or on a sunny windowsill:

• Greenhouse Cucumbers
• Leeks
• Onions
• Greenhouse Tomatoes

Seeds to sow outdoors where they are to grow. Check that the soil is workable and not too cold. A couple of weeks before sowing your seed cover the patch of soil with horticultural fleece or polythene sheets to help warm it up then just before sowing prepare the soil:

• Peas
• Broad Beans
• Radishes
• Turnip

Plants to plant outside in the ground. Before planting seedlings prepare the soil:

• Shallots
• Rhubarb

Other tasks to do in the vegetable garden:

• Dig over the soil if it is not too wet or cold
• Cover establishd Rhubarb to force an early crop
• Chit Seed Potatoes
• Check for wind damage

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Rhubarb can be grown from seed sown in April but it is much better to plant “crowns” to ensure a good strong plant and fruitful crop. You can expect to get 5 to 10 years from your plant so they are very good value. The only drawback is that you will not be able to pull your crop until the plant is a couple of years old so you need to be patient in the early days.

Carrot  Go to Carrot Troubles Sowing Time Planting Time Soil Spacing Cutting / Lifting Time Storage Cooking Unless growing carrots for show purposes grow them as close as possible to avoid having to weed. Water during dry periods. Pull up small carrots from June and lift the main crop in October and store between layers [...]

Brussels Sprouts  Go to Brussels Sprouts Troubles Sowing Time Planting Time Soil Spacing Cutting / Lifting Time Storage Cooking Do not grow Brussels Sprouts in the same plot more than once every three years and ideally it will have grown peas or beans previously. Dig the soil deeply in winter and leave several months before [...]

Jobs to do in the vegetable garden or allotment in January

In the Flower Garden: Plant bare-root roses, trees and shrubs Prune standard roses Take hardwood cuttings from shrubs Remove dead stems and leaves from perennials Tidy grasses In the Vegetable Garden: Fork over empty beds and mix in compost Plant fruit trees Prune Gooseberry bushes Warm up beds for early crops Tie raspberry and blackberry [...]

Try to rest the lawn as much as possible during winter. If practical keep off when wet or frosty, as the grass plants are not actively growing; they will not repair themselves if damaged until the spring. Mowing Only mow the lawn if necessary; this will depend upon weather conditions and temperatures at the time. [...]

In the Flower Garden: Move patio containers to a sheltered spot if very cold Plant out Wallflowers Plant out new rose bushes Take root cuttings of suitable perennials Move shrubs growing in the wrong place In the Vegetable Garden: Take hardwood cuttings from healthy fruit bushes Start pruning apple and pear trees Cut down Jerusalem [...]

Garlic  Click here for Garlic Troubles Sowing Time Planting Time Soil Spacing Cutting / Lifting Time Storage Cooking Garlic grows well in any sunny, fertile site, add organic matter or general-purpose fertiliser before planting. It is best to buy garlic cloves from a garden centre rather than use garlic bought from the supermarket. Break up [...]

Onions  Click here for Onion Troubles Sowing Time Planting Time Soil Spacing Cutting / Lifting Time Storage Cooking Onions can be grown from Sets or from Seed. Onion sets are immature bulbs which have been specially grown for planting. Sets tend to be easier and safer to grow than seed but they are much more [...]

Beans  Click here for Bean Troubles Sowing Time Planting Time Soil Spacing Cutting / Lifting Time Storage Cooking Broad Bean Very easy to grow from seed with black and white scented flowers followed by the pods. Water well when pods are swelling and keep weeds down. Support is necessary for the taller varieties. Pinch off [...]

Parsnip  Click here for Parsnip Troubles Sowing Time Planting Time Soil Spacing Cutting / Lifting Time Storage Cooking Parsnips require very little attention and the roots can be left in the ground all winter and dug up as required but if you store some in November you will still have some when the soil is [...]

Flower/Plants Pull up annuals and put on the compost heap then fork over the beds and border Prune rambling and climbing roses Pot up tender perennials from summer displays and bring under cover for the winter Rake autumn leaves from lawns, and pick them out from around border plants Plant new hedges Fruit/Vegetables Save seeds [...]

Flower/Plants Lift and pot on tender perennials to store indoors Plant spring-flowering bulbs into borders and pots Collect up and compost leaves as they begin to fall to make leaf mould Plant evergreen shrubs and hedging, or move any that are growing in the wrong place Pull up annual climbers and cut back untidy perennial [...]

Autumn is an important season for taking care of your lawn. It is important to use the last months of the growing season to strengthen and prepare the lawn for the rigours of winter. The effort put into a lawn in autumn will improve the quality and health of the lawn right through into the [...]

Saffron comes from the bright red stigmas of the saffron crocus (Crocus sativus). Plant the bulbs during August in a nice sunny spot or a pot on a hot patio and they will produce lovely scented blooms during the autumn year after year.

About 10 years ago my brother, Ken, bought me a Cox’s Orange Pippin apple tree, grafted to keep it small enough for my small garden. Over the years it has basically looked after itself with little or no pruning, but each year it produces a number of apples which I usually forget about and end [...]

Greenhouse TomatoesClick here for Outdoor TomatoesClick here for Tomato TroublesSowing TimePlanting TimeSoilSpacingCutting / Lifting TimeStorageCookingTomato plants grown in a greenhouse will produce fruits from the end of June until October. However, they require constant care and daily watering. Sow two seeds in a 3ins peat pot and remove the weaker one once they form a [...]

First earlies provide new potatoes suitable for salads second earlies fill in the gap between the first earlies and the main crop. Main Crop can be used straight from the ground or can be stored for use over Winter.

This amazing vegetable is famously known for its gourmet taste, delicate flavour and unique texture. Not only would this make a great dish but you can grow this vegetable in your own garden.