furnace lane: March jobs in the garden

About me

I'm a half Finnish designer who has since taken a break to bring up my children. I used to work in Graphic Design, but now I prefer working with textiles and illustration. This blog is about my allotment and garden. I have been gardening for many years and grew up watching my mum and dad do the same. I began my allotment in Jan 2010 in memory of my father who passed a way just before then. I also love cooking and finding inventive and delicious ways to make my produce into meals. I'm growing with my experiences, and welcome any helpful advice! Sometime soon I hope to use my garden as inspiration for my art.

Thursday 11 March 2010

March jobs in the garden

General Jobs in the Garden

Have a good tidy up and finish those odd construction jobs because you are going to be busier still later in the year.
If you have any horticultural fleece, you can peg that onto the ground a week or so before you plant. The small rise in temperature of the soil can make a big difference

If the weather permits you can plant your onion and shallot sets. March is usually the right time to establish an asparagus bed if you are starting from crowns. Mid March should let you start planting those early potatoes you've had chitting and talking of root crops, you can plant Jerusalem artichoke tubers now.

Things to Sow

Beetroot
Broad Beans
Early Peas (but they may do best started in a gutter in the greenhouse then slipped into a trench)
Brussels sprouts – early varieties like Peer Gynt will be ready in September
Kohl Rabi
Leeks
Lettuce
Radish
Parsnips
Spinach Beet
Early Turnips

Sow in Heat

Windowsill or a propagator in the greenhouse will come into use now to start off your tomatoes, peppers, aubergines and cucumbers.

Summer cabbages and early cauliflowers, early carrots will get away best under a cloche. If you set your cloche up a week or two beforehand, it will warm up the soil so you will get even better results.
Many of the crops you can sow directly will also benefit from cloching, especially as you move northwards or started off in modules in a cool greenhouse or coldframe and then planted out later.