It’s often a quiet month in the veg patch this month, but if you’re growing a few crops then you should find that you can harvest several things in the next few weeks. Depending on where you live and what the weather is like, you may also be able to get out into the garden to do a few useful jobs ahead of spring.
What to Plant
Although we’ll be sowing loads of seeds in our polytunnels and getting our spring plug plants on the go for you, February is not a month for planting out. While you’re waiting for things to warm up for spring, you can chit seed potatoes which will be among the first things to go in the ground as spring approaches.
It’s also a good time to plan where you will plant your crops this year – and to order your plants, of course!
If you have broad bean seeds from an autumn Year Round Veg Patch delivery, and haven’t yet sown them, then you can sow them in pots undercover to transplant in spring. (You can sow direct, but mice are likely to eat them at this time of year!)
Jobs for the garden
The key tasks this month are to warm up your beds and get prepared for spring.
- Add well rotted manure or compost to empty beds
- Cover beds with black polythene to warm the soil
- Clear up general garden debris (leaves, weeds, old plants) to keep pests to a minimum
- Keep on top of frosts if you’re growing winter salads
- Clean greenhouse windows and polytunnels
- Clean pots for spring
What to harvest
If you’ve been growing with Rocket Gardens over the winter then you’ll probably have a fair bit to harvest right now:
- The last sprouts and cabbages
- Leeks, celeriac and parsnips
- Winter salad leaves and lettuces
- Spinach and chard
- Golden turnips and swede
- Spring onions
- Pak choi and tatsoi
- Kale