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March Tasks for the Vegetable Gardener

submitted on 5 March 2013
As the weather improves, all being well, and the days lengthen, us gardeners should be outside preparing for the coming growing season. However you may still have some crops in from last year which need harvesting first.

If like me you have leeks left in the ground you should harvest them now. If you don't eat them immediately they can be frozen. You may also have late Brussels sprouts, spinach, parsnips, swedes and winter cauliflowers to harvest.

Overwintered crops, such as autumn planted onions and spring cabbage, will benefit from top-dressing to give spring growth a boost. Use a good rich garden compost, well-rotted manure or chicken manure pellets.

March is about preparation so have a good tidy up before you start to get busy. You may have the odd related project to carry out - I need to construct a new base for one of my water butts as the reclaimed bricks I used previously have started to crumble.

If required you can put supports in place for peas and start preparing runner bean supports and trenches for sowing (in May) or planting out (in June). Runner beans benefit from good moisture retentive material at the roots. Now is also the time to prepare celery trenches.

You can continue to plant your onion and shallot sets. I planted my shallots at the end of last month and haven't the space for any more onions as I planted them along with garlic in the autumn.

You should be able to start planting out your early potatoes in the middle of March. I currently have some first earlies in potato bags in my unheated greenhouse but intend to grow second earlies in a raised bed under polythene.

Now is also the time for planting Jerusalem artichoke tubers.

After cultivating a seedbed and prior to planting, if you have any suitable material such as polythene or fleece, it is worth using it to cover the ground, though you will need to weight it down with bricks or similar to keep it in place. This will raise the soil temperature slightly and help your plants get established.

Start sowing hardy veg directly outdoors as soon as the soil is workable. If the grass has started to grow, that's a good sign that the soil is around 5-6° C - warm enough to allow the hardiest seeds to germinate and grow. If you have a heavy clay soil that is slow to warm, wait a few weeks. If your particular conditions allow you should be able to sow the following this month:-

Beetroot Broad Beans Brussels sprouts Carrots Summer cauliflower Kohlrabi Leeks Lettuce Onions Parsnips Early peas (but you may be better to start them in the greenhouse) Radish Spinach Beet Turnips

Early cauliflowers, early carrots and summer cabbages will benefit from the protection of a cloche which if set up a couple of weeks in advance will warm up the soil so you will get even better results. Alternatively you could start off seeds in modules in a cool greenhouse or cold frame and then plant out later. I have a row of broad beans planted in a raised bed but also have others in pots in the greenhouse.

Sweet peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, aubergines, celery, salads and globe artichokes can all be started on a windowsill or in a propagator.

I hope you and your seedlings enjoy a mild March.

 







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