A Year in the Vegetable Garden

A Quick Guide to What and When

• January

  Sow mammoth onions.

  Sow mammoth leeks from the 3rd week.

  Sow salad vegetables for growing in heated greenhouse.

  Sow early pepper and chillie.

  Give the spring cabbage planted last autumn a high nitrogen feed.

  Check crops in store.

• February

  Sow smaller varieties of onions. Sprout 1st Early potatoes.

  Sow early tomatoes and Aubergine.

  Give all overwintered onions and garlic a top dressing of general fertilizer.

   

• March

  Sow Jolant leeks and Lancaster Leeks, early lettuce, chillie and sweet peppers, aubergine and brassica.

  Outdoor tomatoes varieties can be sown.

  Mammoth Onions and Mammoth Leeks can be moved to cold frame or greenhouse to harden off prior to planting.

   

   

• April

  Plant onions outdoors from end April. Plant out brassica.

  Plant potatoes outdoors. Sow 1st beetroot and carrots outdoors.

  All vegetable plants can now be planted outside as long as the conditions allow.

  Sow leeks and winter brassica for planting later.

• May

  Plant exhibition leeks outdoors.

  All vegetable plants can now be planted outside once plants become ready.

  Sow leeks and purple sprouting broccoli for over wintering.

  From end month plant tomatoes, marrows, squashes and courgettes outdoors as long as conditions allow.

  Make sure all crops are free from pests and treat as needed.

  Peas and beans can be sown direct outdoors.

• June

  Sow salad crops in succession.

  Courgettes, marrows, squash and pumpkin planted.

  Make sure all exhibition vegetables are kept watered.

  Plant winter vegetables.

  Keep good water supply to all varieties of beans to help with setting .

• July

  Make sure exhibition vegetables are kept watered.

  Lettuce sown outdoors. Plant 2nd crop potatoes.

  Harvest small onions if finished. To have quality dry onions harvest early. Pull the onions and cut the tops off approx 10cms above the bulb for small onions and 15cms for larger onions. Remove any split and damaged skins. Dry indoors unless the weather is good. Wait until the outer skin is dry then store in a cool airy place. Do not leave outside if wet as this will affect the keeping qualities.

• August

  Lettuce sown outdoors. Sow 1st winter lettuce.

  Spring cabbage sown. Plant winter vegetables.

  Harvest the large onions during the month and dry indoors.

  Harvest any tender fruit which could be damaged by an early frost. Beans will need continuous picking to enable them to keep fruiting.

• September

  Harvest tender crops prior to frost.

  Sow winter salad vegetables.

  Plant overwintering onion sets.

  Move late planted potatoes under protection.

  Clean any debris off ground in readiness to prepare exhibition ground for next season.

• October

  Garlic planted in prepared ground. If ground is very wet put into pots for planting later.

  Prepare exhibition onion and leeks ground for following season.

  Sow winter salad greens in greenhouse.

  When composting garden refuse do not compost any with disease. Tomato and potato tops with blight must be burnt or disposed of but never composted.

  Harvest carrots and beetroot and store in cool area.

• November

  Tidy vegetable plot of any debris.

  Clean greenhouse. Wash pots and canes to remove insects. Red spider mite can overwinter in canes so wash these well.

  Check stored vegetables for decay.

• December

  Boxing Day the traditional day to sow mammoth onions.

  Review the year’s crops and make notes for new season. New season seed catalogue available why not try to grow something different next year!